Hartlepool: Man who prowled streets before stabbing ‘defenceless’ grandfather ‘for people of Gaza’ jailed
A terrorist who stabbed a stranger to death in an attack motivated by the conflict in Gaza has been sentenced to life in prison, with a minimum term of 44 years.
Ahmed Ali Alid, 45, an asylum seeker who claimed to be from Morocco, would have killed more people if he had not been cornered by armed police while seeking out more victims on 15 October, according to Cleveland Police.
Alid was found guilty last month at Teesside Crown Court and the judge Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb said he “did not have the courage to admit his guilt in court” and had no history of mental illness.
He had attempted to kill his housemate, a Christian convert, then prowled the streets of Hartlepool until he came across Terence Carney, 70, stabbing him six times in the chest, abdomen and back in a terrorist attack.
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Judge describes terror attack
Footage of his arrest shows armed police shouting for Alid to “get down on the ground”. Red laser dots from police guns then cover his body as he appears to ignore their requests.
After he was detained, he told police the attack – a week after the Hamas attacks on Israel – was “for the people of Gaza” and he had wanted to kill more victims.
“I swear by Allah if I had a machine gun and I had more weapons that they would be in thousands,” he reportedly said during his police interview.
Social media pictures showed Alid visiting various UK cities. Pic: Gardham/socialmedia
Alid attacked two female officers
At the end of the interview, Alid attacked two female interviewing officers, grabbing one of them and wrestling her to the ground while yelling “Palestine” and “Allahu Akbar [god is great]”, causing his solicitor to dial 999.
Prosecutor Jonathan Sandiford KC told Teesside Crown Court he was seeking a whole life order for the killing on the grounds it was a murder “done for the purpose of advancing a political, religious, racial or ideological cause”.
Although Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb agreed they were terror offences, she did not impose a whole-life term.
The court heard how the former pastry chef had travelled from Morocco to Spain in 2007 and had spent time in 13 different European countries – including Italy and Germany – before arriving in Middlesborough by ferry from the Netherlands in 2020.
The judge said Alid was not challenged by border force personnel upon his arrival.
He claimed asylum and spent the next three years living in a hotel in Hull and then state-funded accommodation in a terraced house in Hartlepool, waiting for his claim to be processed.
Selfie images showed him on a beach and in the city centres of Newcastle, Birmingham and London.
Sources say it is unclear what his real name and date of birth are. He spent time in Algeria where his mother, father and sisters all lived.
His last call on the evening before the attack was to Algeria, although investigators do not believe he had help with the attack.
Pic: Gardham/social media
Victim was ‘effectively defenceless’
Alid’s housemate Javed Nouri, 31, an Iranian asylum seeker, described how he found Alid laughing and watching videos on his phone following the 7 October attacks by Hamas in Israel.
Mr Nouri alerted police on 13 October and said Alid would sit in the kitchen with a knife and give him “bad looks” after realising he had converted to Christianity.
The police concluded it was the matter of those responsible for the house to manage, according to the judge.
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Sentencing for murder and attempted murder
Alid broke into bedroom with two kitchen knives
Two days later, when Mr Nouri was asleep, Alid broke into his bedroom at around 5am brandishing two kitchen knives and stabbing him in the chest.
He managed to kick Alid away and run for the door but was then attacked from behind and stabbed in the face, before grappling with Alid and getting him into a headlock.
Another housemate came to his assistance and they bundled Alid out of the room and sat with their backs against the door as he kicked at it, attempting to get back in.
During a 999 call, a man is heard shouting “Jesus Christ” while another person, believed to be Alid is heard saying “Allahu Akbar” multiple times.
The handleless blade of a knife found after the attack. Pic: Counter Terrorism Policing North East
‘Random targeting of lone man in the street’
Alid went onto the street and was captured on CCTV footage holding a knife with a 20cm blade in the air, walking along and continuing to say “Allahu Akbar”.
He approached Mr Carney after a few minutes, who was out on a morning walk, and confronted him.
CCTV footage showed Alid stabbing Mr Carney a number of times while his victim was “effectively defenceless” and crying out “no, no,” prosecutor Mr Sandiford told the court. The judge said Alid showed Mr Carney “no mercy”.
Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb sentenced Alid to 44 years and 52 days for murder, taking into account the 213 days already spent on remand.
He was also sentenced to life, with a minimum term of 19 years and 52 days, for attempted murder, but this will run concurrently with the longer sentence.
There will also be no additional time served for the assault of the two interviewing police officers, she said.
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Detective Chief Superintendent James Dunkerley, head of counter-terrorism policing north east, commented: “Alid attacked Javed Nouri and was then out seeking other victims and unfortunately crossed Mr Carney’s path. It was a horrific, unprovoked attack, and Mr Carney unfortunately stood no chance at all.”
“If it hadn’t been for Cleveland Police and the swift response prompted by the calls from Mr Nouri and others in the property, I genuinely believe that we would have been looking at more victims, more injuries, and I do think more people could have lost their lives.”
Mr Carney’s family described him as a “beloved husband, father and grandfather” and thanked Mr Nouri and the other housemates for giving evidence in the trial as “the voice of our loved one, when he was unable to speak out for himself”.
They added in a statement: “We would not want anyone else to have to go through what we have had to go through over the last six months, and what we will continue to go through for the rest of our lives. For us, things will never be the same again. We can take some small comfort in knowing that justice has been served.”
A former Harrods director told Sky News he does not see how security at the department store “wouldn’t have known” about Mohamed al Fayed’s behaviour towards women.
Five women have alleged they were raped by Fayed, who died last year at the age of 94, with several others alleging sexual misconduct.
A legal team representing alleged victims confirmed on Saturday morning they have “had over 150 new inquiries” since the airing of a BBC documentary on Fayed.
The Harrods’ ex-director, who reported directly to Fayed, said: “There was security everywhere, all the phones and offices were bugged, with cameras everywhere.
“I just put it down to paranoia, wanting to know he was getting his pound of flesh from us. The nature of the man was to set everyone against each other, to set directors against each other.
“Whether Fayed’s own offices or stuff had surveillance, I wouldn’t know. But to get into his suite of offices you had to have an appointment, PAs had to arrange it, it was very secure.”
Harrods department store in London. Pic: iStock
He added: “The only thing I was aware of was that someone said he had lots of PAs and they were all blondes. I thought that he just wanted to surround himself with pretty women.”
The former director, who spoke to Sky News on the condition of anonymity, said the culture at Harrods was toxic.
“It was very much keep your head down, no one helped each other. It wasn’t a team as you knew Fayed was trying to catch everyone out.
“He was always trying to make fun of people in front of others, which he thought was very funny.”
Harrods said in a statement on Thursday it was “utterly appalled” by the allegations of abuse and apologised to Fayed’s alleged victims.
The department store has also set up a page on its website inviting former employees to come forward if they have allegations.
Meanwhile, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has defended Sir Keir Starmer after it emerged the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) declined to bring charges against Fayed while the prime minister was director of public prosecutions.
The CPS considered bringing charges against the former Harrods chairman in 2009 and 2015 but concluded there was not “a realistic prospect of a conviction”.
The minister told Sky News that tackling violence against women was a “personal priority” while Sir Keir was head of the CPS as director of public prosecutions between 2008 and 2013.
Bridget Phillipson speaking to Sky News
“I don’t know the details of what happened in 2009, there sometimes can be issues with the evidence that’s presented by the police, whether that can lead to a conviction,” Ms Phillipson said.
“The first time that I ever knew who Keir Starmer was when I saw him on television as director of public prosecutions, talking about the personal priority that he attached to tackling violence against women and girls, so he’s got a personal commitment to it.
“He turned the CPS around while he was leading it to focus on that. But, clearly, if there have been issues that should be considered, that should happen.”
Sir Keir arriving at the Labour Party conference in Liverpool with Angela Rayner. Pic: PA
A Downing Street spokesperson said Sir Keir did not handle Fayed’s case, adding it “did not cross his desk”.
The CPS also provided early investigative advice to the Metropolitan Police in 2018, 2021 and 2023 following allegations made against Fayed.
However, a full file of evidence was never received by the CPS in each of these instances and they were given no further action by police.
Former Victims’ Commissioner Dame Vera Baird accused the CPS of only taking “cases they could win”, saying the organisation was “a den of negativity for all sexual offence allegations and for the people who made them”.
She told Sky News: “They have always been valued for the proportion of cases they win. So you do 20 [cases] and you [win] 15 – 75%, that’s good. But if you only do 10 because 10 are really, really safe, then you get nine of them – that is a super rate of conviction.
“Their interest mitigated for all of that time against the interests of people who severely needed to have the help of the criminal justice system to get over the awful way that they were treated by their assailants. And now it’s very clear that Mr Fayed was one of those.“
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She also said the CPS’s treatment of women may have affected its decision to not take charges against Fayed.
“Women who come forward with complaints of this kind are underestimated and undervalued, and to some extent seen as a liability who [is] likely to be volatile or emotionally not very well, largely because of the way they’ve been treated,” she said.
But Dame Vera defended Sir Keir for his “ahead of the game” approach to violence against women while he was director of public prosecutions.
“They were doing their best and for instance, the CPS was the first ever government organisation to have a violence against women and girls strategy.
“Keir initiated a report by a very highly-regarded lawyer about how the CPS should systematically get away from the myths about prosecution and about sex offences, that it impeded them from taking cases forward. That was a very strong thing to do.”
UK
Crown Prosecution Service acknowledges it twice failed to prosecute Mohamed al Fayed over sex abuse claims
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has acknowledged it had twice failed to bring charges against Mohamed al Fayed for sexual abuse.
The former Harrods owner, who died last year at the age of 94, was described as a “monster” earlier this week by lawyers representing alleged sexual abuse victims.
Women say he raped and sexually assaulted them while they worked at the luxury department store, and accused him of “cherry-picking” women to be brought to his executive suite.
As the legal team said they have heard more than 150 inquiries into Fayed’s alleged crimes, a CPS spokesperson has now said evidence against the Egyptian businessman was provided to prosecutors by the Metropolitan Police twice.
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‘I was terrified’: Alleged victim speaks out
In 2008, Fayed was accused of indecent assault against a 15-year-old girl, which he denied. The CPS did not prosecute the case when it was presented in 2009 over conflicting evidence.
He was then alleged to have raped a woman in 2013, which was reinvestigated by police in 2015 but did not lead to any charges.
While the CPS did review both files, the spokesperson said: “To bring a prosecution the CPS must be confident there is a realistic prospect of conviction – in each instance, our prosecutors looked carefully at the evidence and concluded this wasn’t the case.”
It marks the first time the service acknowledged the 2015 investigation. The CPS also provided the Met Police with early investigative advice for Fayed in 2018, 2021 and 2023.
Full evidence was never received for these instances and the police took no further action.
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‘Mohamed al Fayed brainwashed me’
It comes after the victims’ legal team confirmed on Saturday they had received “over 150 new inquiries” after a BBC documentary on Fayed aired.
It also follows the former head of royal protection saying he warned the Royal Family about Fayed’s reputation before Princess Diana took Prince Harry and Prince William on holiday with the businessman’s son.
Dai Davies told Sky News people were aware of the Egyptian businessman’s reputation as far back as the 1990s, and said: “This was a man who I would be concerned [about] if a relative of mine was going on holiday with him, let alone the future king and his brother and their mother, Princess Diana.”
Princess Diana, Prince William (right) and Prince Harry (left) in Saint Tropez on 14 July 1997. File pic: AP
He added he was “horrified” before the late princess went on holiday with Fayed and his wife to their residence in St Tropez in July 1997.
“I was aware that he had tried very hard to ingratiate himself with the Royal Family,” he said, “and obviously knowing, as I did, the reputation he was alleged [to have] then, I was concerned, and I took the opportunity to inform the Royal Family.”
Buckingham Palace told Sky News it had no comment on the allegations.
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Fulham FC, which was owned by Fayed between 1997 and 2013, also said it is “deeply troubled” by the dozens of “disturbing” sexual abuse allegations against the businessman.
Harrods said in a statement on Thursday it was “utterly appalled” by the allegations of abuse and apologised to Fayed’s alleged victims.
The department store has also set up a page on its website inviting former employees to come forward if they have allegations.
Anthony Joshua missed out on the chance to become a three-time heavyweight world champion after he was stopped by British rival Daniel Dubois in the fifth round.
Dubois, 27, knocked down Joshua towards the end of the opening round with an overhand right to the 34-year-old’s chin.
The IBF heavyweight champion then dropped Joshua at the end of round three and twice in the fourth.
A right hook ended the fight with a knockout for Dubois’ first defence of the title.
The fighters went toe to toe at London’s Wembley Stadium in front of a record 96,000 fans.
The 34-year-old was knocked down four times in the opening four rounds, and knocked out in the fifth. Pic: Reuters
Daniel Dubois became IBF champion after Oleksandr Usyk vacated the title. Pic: Reuters
‘We came up short’
Minutes after retaining the IBF championship, Dubois shouted to the crowd “are you not entertained?” before saying: “I’m a gladiator, you know?
“I’m just a warrior to the bitter end. I’m just ready to go. I want to go to the top level of this game and reach my potential. God bless you all.”
Joshua said the loss would not stop him from rebuilding despite admitting “we came up short”.
“You know I’m ready to kick off in the ring, but I’m going to keep my cool, keep very professional, and give respect to my opponent,” he said.
“I’m always saying to myself I’m a fighter for life… We keep rolling the dice. I had a sharp opponent, a fast opponent and a lot of mistakes from my end, but that’s the game.”
Dubois’ victory has sent a message to the whole heavyweight division
Daniel Dubois will feel like he has fulfilled his destiny here at Wembley. His father has trained him to be a champion boxer since he was tiny.
He held the IBF belt, but he has gone in there tonight and defended it in spectacular fashion – he is now in every conversation going forward.
What now for AJ? Can he face rebuilding? And will he even want to?
The Wembley ring walk is notoriously long, and Dubois looked nervous – but so did Joshua, who has done this many times before in front of a full house.
Perhaps he was thinking of what was at stake – the chance to be a three-time heavyweight champion of the world.
But 27-year-old Dubois holds the belt and was keen to prove he was a worthy champion quickly.
Many wondered if Dubois would freeze on the biggest stage: Question asked and answered emphatically.
It was a crushing defeat for Joshua – most were not expecting such a one-sided victory.
Dubois will now most likely take on the winner of Fury v Usyk 2 for all the belts. But the manner of his victory has sent a message to the whole heavyweight division.
Pic: PA
Pic: PA
Hearn: AJ will want rematch
Promoter Eddie Hearn then said “it was the first round” where Joshua lost, “after that he was fighting on heart and desire”.
Hearn added: “When you are in there with a massive puncher this is what can happen. He never stopped trying to get up, even when he couldn’t get up.
“Daniel deserves credit, he’s a real world champion. Congratulations to him… I’m sure [Joshua will] exercise that rematch clause, it’s a given, it’s a dangerous fight because he’s growing in confidence all the time but he’ll believe he can beat him.”
Pic: Bradley Collyer/PA Wire
British champion Dubois, who before tonight had never fought at Wembley, was elevated to the IBF title holder after Oleksandr Usyk relinquished the belt.
Joshua outweighed Dubois by four pounds, despite a career-heaviest weight for his rival, ahead of the fight.
Among those watching was Tyson Fury, the former WBC heavyweight champion, who took a ringside seat.
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Fury is set to fight Usyk for the other three titles in a rematch on 21 December.
Ahead of the fight, Liam Gallagher played some of Oasis’ biggest hits to the sold-out crowd.
Pic: PA
Pic: Reuters
The 52-year-old frontman walked on to a massive cheer and said “yes Wembley vibes in the air,” before launching into Rock ‘N’ Roll Star, Supersonic and Cigarettes & Alcohol.
He and Noel Gallagher will play Wembley for their first of seven reunion shows at the stadium on 25 July – 307 days away.
Other famous faces ringside were Irish MMA fighter Conor McGregor, former boxer Ricky Hatton, Spice Girl Emma Bunton and Love Island presenter Maya Jama.
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