Regent’s Park mosque attacker jailed

LONDON: A man has been given more than seven years in jail after stabbing a prayer leader at a mosque.Daniel Horton, 30, previously pleaded guilty to one count of grievous bodily harm and possession of a bladed article after the attack at London Central Mosque in Regent’s Park on February 20. He was sentenced to seven years and three months for the attack, during a hearing at Southwark Crown Court.

He will serve another four years on extended licence after he is released.Victim Raafat Maglad, 70, was treated in hospital for his injuries, which included a 0.6in (1.5cm) injury to his neck.Maglad, known as the muezzin – the person who makes the call to prayer – returned to the mosque for Friday prayers less than 24 hours after the attack.

Last month, Judge Deborah Taylor was told by prosecutor Benn Maguire that Mr Maglad is now

“less confident about standing in front of the prayer hall while the congregation is standing behind him, as he is scared about being attacked”.

Maglad suffered nerve damage, has trouble sleeping and his voice has been “adversely affected”, Maguire said. The court was also told that the victim and defendant were known to each other because Horton, who was homeless at the time, had been attending the mosque for a number of years.