Slough Man Pleads Guilty to Racially Aggravated Assault on Orthodox Jewish Worker

Apr 24, 2026, 13:46

Introduction

On April 20, in Slough, Berkshire, Shafiq Rahman, 48, verbally and physically attacked an Orthodox Jewish man while the victim was working. The attack was racially motivated. Rahman later pleaded guilty to charges of racially aggravated common assault, causing fear or provocation of violence by words, and criminal damage at Reading Magistrates’ Court.

Main Body

According to court proceedings, Rahman was cycling along Elliman Avenue when he began shouting antisemitic insults at the victim. He called the victim a derogatory name for a Jewish person and accused him of being responsible for the deaths of children in Palestine. Rahman also threatened to break the victim''s jaw. A video of the incident, shown in court, demonstrated that the attack was unprovoked. District Judge Devinder Sanhu clearly stated that this was a hate crime. He emphasized that the footage showed a completely unprovoked assault on a man who was simply doing his job. Rahman appeared in court wearing a grey prison jumper. He confirmed his identity and admitted the charges. The prosecution, represented by Anushka A, described the sequence of verbal abuse, including Rahman''s initial shout questioning why the victim was in the area. The court granted Rahman bail. He is scheduled to be sentenced on July 10.

Conclusion

This case involves a racially aggravated assault motivated by antisemitic views. The judge explicitly labeled it a hate crime. The defendant now awaits sentencing.

Vocabulary Learning

antisemitic
Hostile or prejudiced against Jewish people.敵視或歧視猶太人的。
Example:His antisemitic remarks led to widespread condemnation.
hate crime
A crime motivated by prejudice against a person's race, religion, etc.出於對他人種族、宗教等偏見而實施的犯罪。
Example:The judge described the incident as a hate crime because of the antisemitic insults.
pleaded guilty
Formally admitted in court that one committed the crime.在法庭上正式承認犯罪。
Example:The defendant pleaded guilty to the charge of theft.
racially aggravated
Made worse or more serious because of racial hatred or prejudice.因種族仇恨或偏見而變得更加嚴重。
Example:He was charged with racially aggravated assault after shouting racial slurs.
unprovoked
Happening without any reason or cause; not triggered by the victim.無緣無故發生的；未受挑釁的。
Example:The attack was completely unprovoked and shocked the community.

Sentence Learning

A video of the incident, shown in court, demonstrated that the attack was unprovoked.
This sentence uses a reduced relative clause 'shown in court' (passive participle) to add information about the video. The main clause uses 'demonstrated that' to report a fact.呢句句子用咗一個縮減嘅關係從句 'shown in court'（被動分詞）嚟補充關於影片嘅資訊。主句用 'demonstrated that' 嚟報告一個事實。
He emphasized that the footage showed a completely unprovoked assault on a man who was simply doing his job.
This sentence contains a relative clause 'who was simply doing his job' to describe the man. 'Emphasized that' introduces a reported statement.呢句句子包含一個關係從句 'who was simply doing his job' 嚟形容嗰個男人。'Emphasized that' 引入一個轉述陳述。
The prosecution, represented by Anushka A, described the sequence of verbal abuse, including Rahman's initial shout questioning why the victim was in the area.
This sentence uses passive voice 'represented by' to indicate who acted for the prosecution. 'Including' introduces additional details.呢句句子用被動語態 'represented by' 嚟表示邊個代表檢控方。'Including' 引入額外細節。
According to court proceedings, Rahman was cycling along Elliman Avenue when he began shouting antisemitic insults at the victim.
This sentence uses 'when' as a linking word to show the time relationship between two actions. 'According to' introduces the source.呢句句子用 'when' 作為連接詞嚟顯示兩個動作之間嘅時間關係。'According to' 引入資料來源。
The attack was racially motivated.
This sentence uses passive voice 'was racially motivated' to focus on the attack rather than the person who motivated it. It is a concise statement of cause.呢句句子用被動語態 'was racially motivated' 嚟聚焦於襲擊本身，而唔係邊個推動咗佢。係一個簡潔嘅原因陳述。