R v Sheraz Hussain
[2024] EWCA Crim 1223
Mohammed Sajid v R
17 November 2023
[2023] EWCA Crim 1346
Court of Appeal
Sajid was convicted of violence. He claimed a witness lied, offering a secret recording as proof. The judge didn't believe the recording was genuine, so Sajid stayed in prison.
Key Facts
- •Mohammed Awais Sajid was convicted of conspiracy to commit violent disorder and causing grievous bodily harm with intent in September 2019.
- •The convictions related to an incident on 17 October 2017 involving a violent attack on tree surgeons.
- •Key witness Shoaib Imran testified that he saw Sajid with a bloodstained axe.
- •Sajid's appeal was based on fresh evidence: a recording of a conversation where Imran allegedly recanted his testimony.
- •The recording was made in May 2020 and provided to Sajid's solicitors in March 2021.
- •The Court of Appeal heard evidence from Imran, Zafran Khan, Tanzeel Khan, and police officers.
- •Zafran and Tanzeel's accounts were deemed inconsistent and unreliable.
Legal Principles
Section 23 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1968 allows for the admission of fresh evidence if it's necessary in the interests of justice and capable of belief.
Criminal Appeal Act 1968
Outcomes
Both applications (extension of time and admission of fresh evidence) were dismissed.
The Court found the fresh evidence (the recording) not credible and incapable of belief. The Court also considered the lack of explanation for the delay in providing the recording and the inconsistencies in the accounts of Zafran and Tanzeel. The evidence given by Imran at trial was deemed reliable and consistent.