A man who made menacing and threatening phone calls to mosques in London and Kent received a prison sentence of over two years yesterday (17 August).
Blake Hindry, of Rosebery Road in Kent, called from a withheld number and threatened to murder worshippers and burn the mosques down.
After a London mosque dialled 999 on 5 August to report the death threats, officers carried out reassurance patrols locally before connecting the threatening calls originated from the same source.
Within three days, officers who worked long hours had located Hindry and arrested him.
Hindry pleaded guilty after appearing before Maidstone Magistrates Court on 10 August. At Maidstone Crown Court yesterday (15 August), Hindry was sentenced to two years and six months in prison.
KentOnline reported that Hindry targeted mosques in Gillingham, east London and southeast London and chillingly told one mosque volunteer: “We are English patriots and we are coming after you. We are going to burn down the mosques, we are going to kill you guys. We are coming for you, we are going to wipe you out. We are going to take back our country.”
The KentOnline report also mentioned how Hindry responded to online disinformation following the horrific stabbings in Southport, which Tell MAMA wrote in length about.
He also called Muslims “paedophiles and killers” – across multiple research reports and news articles, our work has evidenced the criminalising and stigmatising impacts of these anti-Muslim and Islamophobic tropes target Muslims more broadly.
Blake Hindry also has a history of violence and of making violent threats to others.
Tell MAMA recently published an infographic of the targeting mosques following the Southport stabbings.
We provide tailored safety advice for mosques on our website.
Following Hindry’s jailing, Commander Louise Puddefoot, from the Metropolitan Police, said in a statement: “We understand that Muslim communities have felt particularly concerned for their safety following the violent disorder and criminality the country has seen in recent weeks.
“This sentencing demonstrates our determination to bring offenders to justice for racist and criminal behaviour.
“Our teams continue to investigate all offences committed during this period of disorder as we work hard to build trust and confidence in communities.”