Five in court over Croydon asylum-seeker attack

Five people have appeared in court following a brutal attack that left a teenage asylum-seeker with a serious brain injury.

Daryl Davis, 20, Danyelle Davis, 24, George Walder, 20, Jack Walder, 24, and Barry Potts, 20, all from Croydon, were all charged with violent disorder at Croydon magistrates' court.

The Davises, who are siblings, together with Potts and Jack Walder were released on bail until their next court hearing on 1 May. George Walder, Jack's brother, was remanded in custody and also charged with racially aggravated grievous bodily harm.

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Two more suspects, Kyran Evans, 23, and a 17-year-old female, were also arrested in connection to the attack, Scotland Yard announced on Monday night.

Police said up to 30 people were involved in the unprovoked assault on Kurdish-Iranian national Reker Ahmed, who was beaten unconscious at a bus stop in Croydon, south London. The assault has left the 17-year-old hospitalised with a fractured spine, fractured skull and a blood clot on his brain.

Speaking at the scene on Monday, Detective Superintendent Jane Corrigan said: "I have not seen anything like this in London in a long, long time."

Ahmed had recently arrived unaccompanied in the UK in the hope of finding a safe home among the Kurish community of Croydon, which is reeling in shock after the attack

Local Mohammed Qardi, who had seen Ahmed several times, told the London Evening Standard: "He's a quiet person. He's not really talking to everybody. You can see people from their face – he's not a bad guy. He's not looking for trouble.

"We're not happy with what has happened to him," he added. "They have to sort this out because maybe more people will get racist about the refugees coming here.

“He's 17 - he's not grown up, he's just a kid. He doesn't speak English.

“When we first come here we don't speak English properly so they know we are foreigners or a refugee, so they swear at you or say, 'Go back to your country.'"

A JustGiving page to support Ahmed's recovery has now raised almost £20,000, surpassing the initial goal of £3,500.

Community members are also hoping to find Ahmed's family, who are believed to still be in Iran, reports The Independent.

Images released over Croydon asylum-seeker attack

3 April

Police have released images of three people they wish to speak to after a "brutal" attack on a teenage asylum-seeker at a bus stop in Croydon.

Witnesses said up to 20 people watched as the 17-year-old Kurdish-Iranian was kicked and punched on Friday night. He remains in a serious but stable condition in hospital after sustaining a fractured skull and a blood clot on the brain.

It is understood his attackers asked him where he was from before launching the assault.

A witness said: "There was a group of roughly ten people kicking and punching him and the rest, another 10 or 20, were all just around watching.

"There was one person - the one who ended up in hospital - he was getting absolutely beaten up, kicked, mostly in the facial area. He was getting kicked and punched by everyone."

Five people aged between 17 and 24 have been charged with violent disorder, while one has also charged with racially aggravated GBH, reports the BBC.

Detective Inspector Gary Castle, from the Croydon Criminal Investigation Department, asked for the public's help in identifying the people in the images released.

He said: "If you can help identify any of these people please call my team without delay."Gavin Barwell, MP for Croydon Central, said: "It's an appalling crime and I hope the people responsible are caught quickly and receive the full force of British justice."

London Mayor Sadiq Khan also condemned the attack, saying: "Hate crime has no place in London, Britain or anywhere else."

The London Evening Standard reports that a crowdfunding page set up for the victim has so far raised more than £5,400.

Anyone with information about the attack is urged to call the police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.