Hunt for racist thug in English Defence League T-shirt who attacked Asian man in Rochdale

CCTV images of the man police want to question over the attack

A racist thug who abused and attacked a passer-by in a shopping precinct is being hunted by police.

The man, who was wearing a T-shirt promoting the English Defence League, targeted a 31-year-old Asian man as he walked through the Wheatsheaf Centre in Rochdale town centre. Images from CCTV cameras have been released by police in a bid to identify him.

The thug began to racially abuse the man as he walked past then grabbed hold of his shirt collar and pressed a ballpoint pen to the side of his face. Police said the victim could also feel a sharp item being pressed to his back. He struggled free but the abuse continued until security guards intervened.

The thug then escaped. He is white, in his late 40s to early 50s, around 6ft tall and skinny. He was wearing a T shirt labelled 'EDL Stockport'.

Sgt Colin Macdiarmid said: "The abuse this victim suffered can only be described as vitriolic and appalling. Thankfully he was not hurt though the behaviour of the offender led him to fear for his safety. Racist thugs are not welcome anywhere in Greater Manchester."

Call police on 0161 856 9961 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Manchester Evening News

Thanks to Tony for the heads-up


Update 11/6/11.

Man charged following racist attack in town centre

A man has been charged after a racist attack on an Asian man in Rochdale town centre.

Wayne Peter Taylor, 44, of Stock Close, was charged with racially aggravated common assault.

He is due to appear at Rochdale Magistrates Court on Monday 20 June 2011.

At about 4.00pm on Monday 9 May 2011, the victim, a 31-year-old Asian man was threatened a number of times in the Wheatsheaf Centre on Yorkshire Street.

Thanks for your help.

BTP launches hunt for racist group

British Transport Police has launched a hunt for a group of men who chanted racist slurs onboard a morning train on Saturday, 5 March.

The incident happened on the 11.08am Leeds to Manchester Victoria service, when a group of around 50 men boarded the service at Halifax.

Detective Constable Jason Ridgway, of BTP’s Criminal Investigation Department, said: “The group’s behaviour included chanting racist and inappropriate remarks and aggressively punching and banging on the train’s interior, causing unnecessary fear for passengers and staff onboard the train. The behaviour of these men was outrageous and has no place on the railway – or in the wider community – especially at a time when families are travelling between cities.

DC Ridgway added: "Racism and Islamophobia in our community and on the rail network is totally unacceptable. Everyone has the right to travel without fear of abuse or threatening behaviour, and when that behaviour is further exacerbated by racist undertones, our stance becomes firmer still. BTP and the wider rail industry will not tolerate any form of racism on the rail network and we will do everything in our power to take action against those responsible.”

The group are believed to have been travelling to an EDL demonstration in Rochdale taking place later that day.

If you have information please contact British Transport Police on 0800 40 50 40 quoting background reference B12/NWA or call the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

BTP

Businesses lose out as shoppers stay away from EDL/UAF protests

Shopper free zone - Normally full of shoppers' cars,
the town hall car parks were instead filled with police vehicles

Town centre shops and pubs lost thousands of pounds as a result of Saturday's protest.

The council had issued a 'business as usual' message to shoppers and traders prior to the weekend's demonstrations. But many businesses closed for the day in case violence erupted. All town centre pubs also shut up shop during the day but opened as normal in the evening.

Paul Turner-Mitchell, director of 25Ten Boutique on Yorkshire Street, said: "Trade at the shop was probably down about 50 per cent to what it should be on a Saturday. Town was quieter than usual which was to be expected. We will never get this day back or the trade we lost. Especially in the current climate we could really do without it at the moment."

John Peers, owner of John Peers Hair Studio on South Parade, closed his salon at 10am - losing more than £1,500 in takings. He said: "It was a complete wipe out. It was a really bad thing to happen to us. We had to cancel a lot of appointments and the worry is that some of these may now go elsewhere and we will lose custoers. I suppose on the bright side it could have been worse and there was no damage to our shop."

Lorenzo O'Reilly, manager at Rochdale Exchange shopping centre, praised the police for their handling of the operation. He said there was no trouble in the centre but he did remove benches and planters for the day. Any groups that entered the centre were asked to leave and did so without any trouble.

Rochdale Observer

The price of democracy: Rochdale faces £300,000 bill for policing EDL and UAF protests

Police keep EDL and UAF demonstrators apart outside Rochdale Town Hall on Saturday

The cost of policing a rally by the far-right English Defence League could top £300,000, we can reveal.

Protesters from the EDL – who claim to oppose ‘extreme’ Islam – clashed with rival demonstrators from the left-wing Unite Against Fascism (UAF) group in Rochdale town centre on Saturday. Thirty-four people were arrested - the majority from the EDL. The cost of the policing operation will be jointly paid for by Greater Manchester Police and the council – at a time when both are facing huge government spending cuts.

Senior sources told us the final bill was likely to run to £200,000-£300,000 or even higher. Town hall chiefs have had to slash £64m from their budget after the Treasury slashed around 20pc from their grants.

Council leader Colin Lambert said: "At a time of cutbacks and the budget being so tight we could have done without this outside group coming into Rochdale."

About 550 EDL protesters attended the protest, with the majority from outside the area. There were some minor disturbances, with bottles thrown and flares and firecrackers set off. Most arrests were for minor disturbances such as affray, public order offences, and being drunk and disorderly. No serious offences were reported.

Pat Colclough, a Rochdale councillor and member of Greater Manchester Police Authority, said: "There was a huge amount of money spent on this operation."

But Farooq Ahmed, the council's portfolio holder for finance, said town hall chiefs were ultimately powerless to stop it taking place. He added: "If someone had been seriously hurt then it would have cost a lot more for the police and the council."

Simon Danczuk, Labour MP for Rochdale, said: "These are some of the costs of having a democracy. You do not get democracy for free."

Chief Superintendent John O’Hare said: "The final cost of the operation is not yet known, but it is important to stress that the cost of getting this right would be dwarfed by the cost to the community of us getting it wrong."

Manchester Evening News

EDL Rochdale: Piss Poor!

The EDL turnout at Rochdale today was rubbish. When are they going to leave us alone?

The English Defence League demonstration in Rochdale today was extremely feeble. About 350 turned up and there were 35 arrests, i.e., 10% of them. This will no doubt be interpreted as a massive victory by the under fire leadership. The EDL claim this was a regional demo but it was still a piss poor effort. The hoodies and flags on display were mainly from Wigan, Bolton and Leeds with 1 or 2 other few towns as well. Rochdale division, if one exists, maintained an extremely low profile. The cops and commentators on Twitter said that the vast majority of EDL had been bussed in, i.e., were not from round the Dale.

The EDL still brag about outnumbering the opposition and no doubt will do so tonight on their web forums. Well, the reason why there isn’t a massive turnout against them is because many anti-fascists realise that the EDL are not worth it and that the EDL’s bother over ‘Islamism’ is insignificant compared to the economy, the government coalition and the middle east. However, the local youth did turn out in force – and in some rather fetching black ensembles. Nice!

Yet again the vast majority of the EDL were bussed in from outside, escorted and then kettled by the cops whilst annoying the local community - rather than representing them. They are whining about the cops having a go at them and numerous members were bitten by plod dogs. The EDL threatened to demonstrate at Dagenham and in the East Midlands but the Dagenham protest against the mosque has been hampered by the split between the EDL and the English National Alliance led by Bill ‘Bunter’ Baker, the pastryman’s friend. The EDL and ENA fell out last week after Baker had made a twat of himself on TV, something which the publicity hungry EDL leader, Stephen Caxley-Robinson resented because if anyone is going to make a twat of themselves on TV it is going to be him! From what we can gather, fuck all happened in the East Midlands either.

Still, EDL watchers this week will no doubt have been amused by the EDL Islamic Division Facebook group prank. And whilst the EDL are desperate to assure people they are not BNP, who turned up to ‘protect’ the BNP stall in Barnsley last week from beastly trade unionists, but the EDL. So much all the ‘hard work’ the leadership do purging the ranks of fascists. Fuckwits.

Bury Black Pudding at Indymedia

Call for calm ahead of EDL and UAF protests

Community leaders appealed for calm ahead of protests by the English Defence League

Hundreds of right-wing demonstrators are set to descend upon the town centre on Saturday afternoon. A rival protest by the left-wing group Unite Against Fascism was also set to take place in Deeplish – sparking fears of clashes between the opposing factions. But faith leaders were urging people to stay calm, while the police had vowed to clamp down on any violence.

Mushtaq Ahmed, chairman of Rochdale Council of Mosques, said that he had asked Muslims not to join in during Friday prayers yesterday. He told the Observer: "We are asking people not to organise their own counter protests as it will not help. We have heard that there may be some young men coming from neighbouring towns and we do not welcome them. We have got good community cohesion here in Rochdale and hopefully it will pass off peacefully. The EDL have a democratic right and we respect that as long as it does not cause problems for the rest of the community."

More than 500 EDL members were expected to meet in the town before holding a demonstration outside the town hall and war memorial from about 1.30pm.

Seventy-four people were arrested and seven injured in violent clashes between the EDL and UAF during a protest in Bolton last March while 10 people were injured and 44 arrested during an EDL protest in Manchester city centre in October 2009.

But Leon Britain, north west organiser for the EDL, said the Rochdale protest would be peaceful. He said: "We are coming to Rochdale to highlight the paedophile grooming in the town and have been invited by our Rochdale division. We are not out to cause tension and do not go out intent on causing trouble. If you look at our previous demonstrations in Bolton and Manchester where there has been fighting it has only been because of the police force being against us and from radical Islamists attacking us."

Chief Supt John O' Hare, the man in charge of Rochdale police, was leading the security operation. He said: "This event will be policed in a professional and sensitive manner but I must make it clear that anyone who is coming with the sole intention of intimidating communities or inciting violence and racism can expect a swift and robust police response. GMP has been working extremely closely with the council, all faith groups in the town and other partners to inform residents and address any concerns they have. Our police operation does not finish once the demonstrators leave town. There will be an extensive policing operation into the night and in the days afterwards."

Town centre pubs were expected to remain open as usual and Roger Ellis, chief executive of Rochdale council, said shops would trade as normal while the protest took place. He said: "Public safety is our priority and police will be joined by officers from various council services to provide a substantial and visible reassuring presence throughout the day, during the event and afterwards. We respect everyone's democratic right to undertake a peaceful demonstration but be assured that we will support the police in dealing swiftly with any criminal or public order offences."

MP Simon Danczuk said: "I understand that many people are angry at the cuts, frustrated that they're working harder for less and looking for scapegoats. But Rochdale should not be bullied by the English Defence League who are coming to our town to sow division, fear and hatred."

Manchester Evening News

Thanks to NewsHound for the heads-up

EDL rally planned for Rochdale

The English Defence League (EDL) has planned a rally to take place in Rochdale on Saturday (5 March 2011).

The rally is due to take place between 12.00pm and 3.00pm outside Rochdale Town Hall.

A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police confirmed that the force have had notification of the rally from the English Defence League. Details of the rally were posted on the EDL forum. The post reads: “We will be meeting at the train station between 12.00 – 1.00pm. From there we will make our way up to a public house in the town centre. At 2.00pm we will make our way over to our demo point at the Town Hall.”

A poster detailing the information and reason for the rally reads: “The English Defence League is to hold a demonstration in the town of Rochdale to highlight the peoples concerns over the grooming culture amongst the Islamic communities. Recent investigations by [Greater] Manchester Police has led to a number of arrests of Asian men and the former Home Secretary Jack Straw finally bringing this issue to [the] attention of the media and public.”

Rochdale Online understands there will be counter demonstrations from the Islamic Defence League and Unite Against Fascism. A group named ‘Stop the racist EDL coming to Rochdale’ has also been formed.

Greater Manchester Police and Rochdale Borough Council have promised statements but these had not arrived at the time of publication.

Rochdale Online

Thanks to NewsHound for the heads-up

Anger as horror attack thugs walk free

The family of a teenage girl left with a pendent embedded in her face are furious her teenage attackers have escaped jail. The two girls and a boy, who cannot be named because they are all 16, were given referral orders or community sentences by magistrates.

The uncle of the victim, who has asked not to be named, said: "This was an horrific attack so it is disappointing that the perpetrators have escaped custodial sentences. It sends out the wrong message."

The victim had gone to a children's playground in Rochdale's Springfield park in June with her three young sisters, aged five to 11, and her sister-in-law, who was with her 18-month-old baby. They were confronted by one of the 16-year-old girls and Kirsty Leigh Hood, 19. The victim was subjected to verbal abuse, including chants of 'BNP'. The 16-year-old boy and another girl later approached the women and also became confrontational. When the boy mumbled something at the victim she told him to speak English, to which he responded: "I'm more British than you."

The boy then told one of the two girls to pull the victim's headscarf off, but she punched her in the face with such force that the pendant from her bracelet became embedded beneath the 17-year-old student's eye. She was taken to Rochdale Infirmary where the pendant was removed.

Hood, 19, of Yew Dale Gardens, Marland, was fined last month after admitting a public order offence. The girl who threw the punch had earlier pleaded guilty to causing actual bodily harm and was given a 10-month referral order by District Judge Paul Richardson at Rochdale magistrates after he heard the attack was her first offence. She will not have to pay costs or compensation as she is jobless and has no parental support.

Mr Richardson said: "It was the conclusion of a very ugly incident in a public park. Mercifully, the injury the victim sustained was not of a permanent nature, but for the victim was still a very alarming incident."

The 16 -year-old boy, who has 30 previous convictions for a catalogue of offences, admitted common assault at an earlier hearing and was given a nine month supervision order and placed under a curfew for two months. The second 16-year-old girl, who has 13 previous convictions and was involved in verbally abusing the victim alongside Hood, pleaded guilty to a public order offence earlier and was given a nine-month supervision order. Both their parents must pay £200 costs.

Manchester Evening News

Brewery boss slams BNP

A brewery boss has labelled the BNP "racist" after it emerged the party had used one of his pubs to hold a meeting.

William Lees-Jones, managing director of JW Lees, said he was "shocked" after a Guardian investigation revealed the Assheton Arms Hotel, on Market Place, was the venue for the far-right British National Party's Middleton conference on Thursday 15 March.

"There's no way we would support such a terrible organisation," he said. "We would not want to be associated with them. They are racists and there's no place for that sort of thinking. I recognise people's right to freedom of speech, but they can go and do it somewhere else."

He added: "It is the last meeting they will be holding at the Assheton Arms."

Mr Lees-Jones said the BNP had booked the function room under an alias, saying it was for a business meeting. The manageress of the pub was unaware of the party's presence, he added.

The BNP was due to hold another meeting at the Assheton Arms on Tuesday night but was forced to cancel after Mr Lees-Jones became aware of their conference. Organiser of the BNP Rochdale branch, Kevin Bryan, said: "There will still be a meeting in Middleton. Even if it is on a car park we'll do it, because that's what the people of Middleton want."

Mr Bryan said pub landlords across Greater Manchester welcome the BNP's meetings and the party had used JW Lees pubs throughout the north west for many years. He added he would send a letter to all party members to boycott JW Lees pubs in the north west after Mr Lees-Jones' comments.

Two weeks ago, the BNP declared the town as one of its biggest growth areas and considered fielding a candidate for the local elections in May. But last week it was announced that no candidate from the BNP had been put forward in Rochdale borough.

The party now plans to hold regular monthly meetings in the area after the success of the March event, attended by around 30 people. Mr Bryan said a look at the BNP's party manifesto shows there is "nothing terrible about the organisation". Their 2006 council election manifesto promised an "asylum clampdown" and an end to "all council spending on all politically-correct projects designed to favour Labour and Liberal Democrat pet minorities".

Middleton Guardian

Race hate campaign features swastika stickers

Police have launched an investigation over claims that a neo-nazi gang has launched a campaign of hate in Shawclough.

It comes after the Observer was alerted to several fluorescent stickers said to originate from extremist group Combat 18 were posted on lampposts across Heights Lane. Depicting a masked man holding a gun and a swastika logo, the notices warn that the group which has links to violence and arson attacks is ‘in the area’.

Ward Councillor Elwyn Watkins visited the alleged crime scene after he was notified by a concerned friend, who had swiftly removed a number of the offensive stickers.

He said: “This is a nice area where everyone gets on with everyone. We do not want these racist thugs here. While areas like Burnley and Oldham have been subject to race riots, Rochdale has not. We want it to stay that way.”

He added: “I have heard of other cases where stickers such as these have been removed only to find razorblades tucked away underneath. I would urge anyone who sees one of these stickers not to remove them but contact the council’s environmental management department.”

Muslim campaigners at the Ramadhan Foundation are also calling for a zero-tolerance approach. Spokesman Mohammed Shafiq said: “We are absolutely appalled by this sort of behaviour. The vast majority of people will not tolerate will not tolerate these thugs, bigots and criminals in Rochdale. I urge the public to stay calm.”

The stickers will now be examined by forensic experts, while Rochdale north Inspector Stuart Hey is also asking anyone with information to come forward by calling 0161 856 8523. He said: “We are taking this matter very seriously.”

The Asian News