Man convicted of murder of Rochdale Imam
Mohammed Syeedy, 21, was consumed by hatred of Jalal Uddin, 71, because he practised a form of Islamic healing
A former Manchester United steward has been convicted of the IS-inspired murder of an imam. Mohammed Syeedy, 21, was consumed by hatred of Jalal Uddin, 71, because he practised a form of Islamic healing in Rochdale's Bangladeshi community which the terror group consider black magic''. Syeedy acted as getaway driver for another man, Mohammed Kadir, 24, who bludgeoned Mr Uddin to death in a children's play area on the early evening of February 18, Manchester Crown Court heard. Kadir fled the UK three days after the killing and it is thought he may now be in Syria. Syeedy held his hands to his face in shock after the foreman delivered the verdict after about four hours of jury deliberations. He later shook his head several times with his face covered as he sat down. High Court judge Sir David Maddison will sentence him later
Defenceless Mr Uddin was dealt at least five savage blows with a blunt weapon, thought to be a hammer, shortly after he entered the park in South Street, Rochdale.
The swift and ferocious attack smashed his skull and drove a piece of bone into his brain.
Their victim was targeted after it was discovered he was providing 'taweez'', in which he made amulets to bring good fortune to the wearer.
Syeedy was involved in months-long surveillance of Mr Uddin and along with Kadir stalked their prey after he left the Jalalia Mosque to go to a friend's house for an evening meal
The Crown said Syeedy was a knowing participant'' in the murder and his claim he had no idea what IS supporter and ex-John Lewis call centre worker Kadir planned and then carried out wasabsurd''.
Syeedy may even have provided the murder weapon - which has not been found - during the night, the jury heard.
When police searched the defendant's family home in Ramsay Street they discovered a large volume of IS-related material on his phone and other devices, which the Crown say clearly showed he had been radicalised.
Photographs showing Syeedy and friends raising IS-style index finger salutes and holding IS flags were found, the court heard.
In a bedroom wardrobe, investigators also found various patches, flags and a headband, all said to have contained jihadist symbols.
A video clip featuring an aid convoy he embarked on to Syria contained footage of his younger brother planting a black flag, with Arabic writing, outside a community centre, near to the murder scene in Rochdale.
Another video recording showed a friend in a local B&Q store stating: Islamic State are coming to Oldham.''
Also recovered from the defendant's iPhone was footage of Mr Uddin lying dying on the ground in South Street, said to have been filmed by a local teenager.
Giving evidence, the Rochdale-born Muslim said he was not a follower of IS and was disgusted'' about the death of Bangladeshi national Mr Uddin.
He said the brutality of IS had touched him and his family personally with the death of abducted taxi driver and aid volunteer Alan Henning.
Syeedy said he met Mr Henning at a number of charity events and his elder brother was a close friend who was on the particular convoy to Syria in which Mr Henning, 47, was kidnapped in December 2013 and later murdered.
He explained the so-called IS symbols in his possession were merely testaments to his faith and said the terror group had hijacked them for their own ends.
His barrister, Icah Peart QC, said a small selection'' of nearly 8,000 images recovered from his client's devices essentially amounted to afew pictures distributed on social media and a few videos of Muslim lads plainly having a laugh''.
Syeedy, he said, was a caring humanitarian'' who worked tirelessly for a number of charities, both local and international, and his selfless deedsput us all to shame''.
The defendant told the court he did not agree with taweez'' and admitted he was involved in a plan to deport illegal overstayer Mr Uddin, a former imam at the Jalalia Mosque.
When that failed, he said, he turned his attentions to exposing Mr Uddin's practices and said Kadir, of Chamber Road, Oldham, entered the park in a bid to dupe him into giving a taweez, which could then be presented to the mosque committee
Syeedy picked him up from the other side of the park and then, he said, later drove to Oldham to persuade Kadir to go to the police after he told him he left empty-handed when he saw two men nearby Mr Uddin.
Prosecutor Paul Greaney QC said his version of events was nonsense'' and that he was just as much a killer as Kadir.
Former imam Jalal Uddin practised Ruqya healing in which he used amulets called taweez, which is regarded in some quarters as magic.
Jurors at the trial of Mohammed Syeedy, 21, who was convicted of murdering Mr Uddin, 71, in Rochdale on February 18 this year, heard that magic is a controversial topic'' in Islam.
Black magic involves the use of spirits or demons, often referred to as Jinn, to carry out harmful acts against individuals, Manchester Crown Court heard.
White magic involves the use of charms, incantations and amulets used for personal protection from evil spirits or to bring about fortuitous events, such as pregnancy or wealth.
Such amulets, used by Mr Uddin, are often called taweez which can be worn by a person and can contain mathematical symbols and verses from the Quran.
Prosecutor Paul Greaney QC told the jury: Amulets involve the magician writing a series of magic formulae on a piece of paper, folding or rolling it and then placing it in a small box or other receptacle.
The person who has requested the taweez then keeps it with himself or herself at all times in order, for example, to guard against the evil spirit.
Sometimes it is worn around the neck but often it is not because the wearer might otherwise attract criticism or attack. As a result, it is sometimes sown into clothing.''
He went on to explain that all Islamic scholars regard black magic as forbidden but many regard white magic as acceptable so long as it is carried out by someone skilled in its practice.
But he said that Islamic State supports a trend in Islam known as Salafism, whose followers argue Islam has strayed from its roots and should return to the practice of the seventh century.
Salafis reject all forms of magic and believe those who practise it should be punished, often by death, Mr Greaney added.
The court heard that Mr Uddin did not advertise his skill in Ruqya but word spread within Rochdale's Bangladeshi community who came to him in search of good fortune.
Tireless'' charity work undertaken by Mohammed Syeedy masked his hatred of Jalal Uddin.
The jury in his murder trial at Manchester Crown Court heard from numerous friends and associates in Rochdale's Bangladeshi community that Syeedy, 21, was a kind, selfless humanitarian who was committed to helping those less fortunate.
One former charity colleague even described him as like a teddy bear, you just want to hug him, he is such a nice guy''.
The former part-time Manchester United steward was working at Harry's Chicken and Pizza takeaway in Rochdale town centre at the time of his arrest this year after he dropped out of an electronical engineering degree course at Huddersfield University.
Rochdale-born Syeedy told the court that he gave his entire £100 weekly wage to his unemployed mother to help her run the family home.
He was actively involved in the running of several youth organisations in the town designed to get kids off the streets'' and was held up as a role model for local youngsters.
Syeedy also found time to deliver food parcels and hot meals to refugees in the area and threw himself into raising cash for the needy around the world with cake sales, car washes and barbecues.
His involvement with charity Human Aid even took him to Syria on a medical aid convoy in December 2013.
The convoy to deliver ambulances in the war-torn country followed a day on from a similar mission undertaken by his elder brother and his friend'' Alan Henning. The Salford taxi driver was abducted shortly after arriving in Syria and was later executed by Islamic State (IS).
A different picture of Syeedy emerged though when police seized phones and devices at his family home in Ramsay Street, the prosecution said.
Among thousands of images were Jihadist material, said the Crown, including the defendant posing in photographs holding IS flags, wearing IS patches and raising index-finger salutes, commonly used by the terror group.
Syeedy said the symbols were not proof he had been radicalised but merely testaments to his Muslim faith and that IS had hijacked them for their own use.
A video on his phone of his younger brother planting an alleged IS black flag outside Wardleworth Community Centre - near to where Mr Uddin was attacked - and a friend videoing himself in a B & Q store saying Islamic State are coming to Oldham'' werejust banter'' among friends.
He had also downloaded a publication called Join The Caravan which advocated violent jihad and martyrdom, said to have been written by one of the founders of al Qaida. Syeedy transferred the download to a memory card but claimed he had not actually read it.
The prosecution said his extremist sympathies drove him to becoming an integral part'' of the plan to murder Mr Uddin, 71, by aiding IS supporter Mohammed Kadir, 24, to bludgeon him to death in a children's park in South Street, Rochdale, on February 18.
Both targeted the former imam because they considered his form of healing, which involved the use of amulets, as black magic'', which IS punish with execution.
Ex-John Lewis call centre worker Kadir, who worked with Syeedy at Harry's, fled the UK three days after the killing and is now thought to be in Syria.