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21 Nov, 2018 13:20

‘Muslim go home’: London thugs convicted of beating up Italian barman after mistaking his religion

‘Muslim go home’: London thugs convicted of beating up Italian barman after mistaking his religion

A judge has convicted attackers who lobbed a bottle and shouted “Muslim go home” at a 20-year-old Italian barman, as they drunkenly chased him outside London tube station.

At around midnight on June 10 this year, the group of thugs targeted Dario Antonioni as he headed home from Canada Water station because his dark hair and beard led them to believe he was Muslim.

The trio chased the barman down and shouted “f***ing Muslim” at him.

“A bottle was thrown at me and I started walking quickly and then started to run. I was frightened,” Antonioni told Inner London crown court on Monday.

He was then surrounded by the group and fell to the ground, where he was repeatedly struck by each of the men.

“I said: ‘What are you doing? Why are you doing this?’ and I was speaking to them in Italian, but they increased the shouting,” Antonioni explained.

The Italian managed to save himself by running into a kebab shop. He was left with grazes on his face and bruises on his elbows and knees.

Two men, butcher Joshua O’Leary, 23, and warehouse worker Alfred Young, 19, were convicted of the attack. A third man, believed to be the leader of the group, was caught on camera by a local filming the attack but is yet to be identified.

Addressing the defendants as he sentenced them, Judge Benedict Kelleher said: “Due to your prejudice and ignorance and because he had a small beard you all thought he was a Muslim and shouted abuse at him.

“He put up a spirited defence to your completely unjustified attack late at night while under the influence of alcohol.”

O'Leary and Young were both spared jail and were handed a 12-month community order instead. They were both ordered to pay £150 ($190) in compensation to the victim, while O’Leary’s sentence also includes 20 days of rehab.

Official statistics revealed earlier this year that the number of religious hate crimes increased by 40 percent across England and Wales between 2016-17 and 2017-18.

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