Fishing For Hate — Catching Suspended Sentences

Two men who went ‘fishing for Jews’ in north London as they filmed anti-Semitic TikTok videos have been given suspended prison sentences. 

Adam Bedoui and Abdelkader Amir Bousloub, both 21, previously pleaded guilty to religiously aggravated intentional harassment after they shouted anti-Semitic abuse at a Jewish person.

Bousloub approached the victim and started yelling insults while filming it on a mobile phone, while Bedoui stood behind him, laughing and also tormenting the victim.

The two can be seen grinning while strolling along a street in Stamford Hill with a fishing rod in videos released by Shomrim, a Jewish volunteer neighbourhood watch organisation.

They have attached a note to the end, in reference to vile anti-Semitic tropes about Jews.

In CCTV footage, Bedoui is seen holding the rod in front of him while Bousloub records with his phone as they pass through an entry hall.

Subsequent video shows Shomrim volunteers standing close by as the two are searched and taken into custody by police.

The Metropolitan Police said Bedoui and Bousloub had travelled to Clapton Common with ‘deliberate’ intentions to capture anti-Semitic content. 

Shomrim reported that the pair had specifically targeted Orthodox Jews in the filmed encounters.

Officers were called about 9 pm on Thursday, May 7, and detained the pair after they attempted to flee.

According to the CPS, the defendants intended to publish the footage on social media.

When questioned by the police, Bousloub said he had gone to Stamford Hill to film a video with a fishing rod with the aim of getting a reaction and to copy what he had seen on an Instagram reel.

He said he had intended to share what he filmed with others on TikTok and that he was expecting numbers in the hundreds or thousands of people to watch it. 

He tried to claim that he thought the Jewish community would find what he was doing funny. Bedoui made a no-comment police interview.

The victim said the incident left him feeling vulnerable and targeted.

The pair have now been sentenced to six weeks’ imprisonment, suspended for twelve months. 

Prosecutor Varinder Hayre said: ‘These men deliberately targeted a member of the Jewish community, and subjected him to antisemitic abuse in a public place.

‘They filmed the incident with the intention to upload it to social media and amplify the harm caused to the victim.

‘The CPS worked closely with the Metropolitan Police to build a strong case, securing a conviction less than 48 hours after the incident.

‘Hate crime has a serious impact on victims and communities. We will continue to prosecute these offences robustly.’

Detective Chief Superintendent Brittany Clarke, who leads policing in the area, said: ‘These men thought nothing of travelling to Stamford Hill so they could generate social media likes from hateful so-called content.

‘There is no place for antisemitic hate in this city, and this case carries a clear warning for anyone tempted to commit hate crimes in pursuit of online notoriety.

‘These men were arrested within minutes of the incidents being reported to us. They were then charged, remanded to court and convicted 48 hours after the original report.’

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: ‘This sentence has absolutely no deterrent effect.

‘If anything, it reminds antisemites how little they have to fear from the criminal justice system even now amidst the worst wave of anti-Jewish attacks in modern British history. 

‘It is surely because of outrageously lenient sentences like this one that only 10 per cent of British Jews think that the courts do enough to protect them. 

‘When antisemites are given a slap on the wrist, it sends the message that Jews are fair game.

‘This decision is appalling and will only further erode what little confidence the Jewish community has left in the criminal justice system. 

‘Antisemitic offenders must face punishments that actually reflect the seriousness of their crimes.’ 

This sentence was absurdly light. ‘Suspended’ – why bother taking them to court at all? If you violate the law, then it should be jail time. They should have been given a custodial sentence, but then what do you expect? The whole judicial system is a disgrace, which then enables all kinds of crimes to take place without fear of incarceration.

Well, that was a great deterrent, and it does nothing at all to make Jewish people feel safe. The judge may as well have given them compensation and a flat for their inconvenience because our courts have wilted.

Prosecute robustly. I guess the judicial system is unfamiliar with the true meaning of those words. Now this pair will be laughing and bragging about how they got away with it.

This type of behaviour is similar to the Blackshirts, fascist supporters of Oswald Mosley who used physical altercations in the East End to intimidate Jews. These are the new Blackshirts, and believe me, things will only get worse.