Ishak Ali is jailed over offences in Bradford and Batley

A court heard that Ishak Ali had threatened to cut off a vulnerable man’s fingers with a pair of sharp secateurs during a robbery and his crime spree had left his victims terrified.

At a trial in August this year, a jury at Bradford Crown Court found Ali guilty of robbing the man of just £10 and a mobile phone after the 39-year-old had followed his victim from a shop back to his block of flats in Batley.

Prosecutor Stephen Grattage said the complainant, who was known to Ali, was surprised to see him when he got back to his flat door, but the defendant then pushed him into his home and threatened to use pepper spray on him.

Ali demanded £10 and then picked up the garden secateurs and threatened:”I’ll cut your ******* fingers off.”

The case was heard at Bradford Crown Court

As he left with the money and the victim’s mobile phone Ali threatened to kill the man and others if he called the police.

The robbery was part of a series of offences committed by Ali in the summer of 2023 and Judge Sophie McKone concluded that his previous criminal history and the nature of the latest crimes meant that he was a “dangerous” offender and an extended sentence was needed in his case.

He will have to serve two-thirds of the nine-year sentence before being considered for release by the Parole Board and after his release he will have to comply with an extended licence period of three years.

Three days before the robbery Ali had carried out what the judge described as “a frenzied and vicious” attack on a man at a house in Bradford.

Judge McKone said that for some inexplicable reason, Ali had repeatedly used a crutch or walking stick to hit the man over the head and he had then assaulted two women who tried to intervene in the violence.

The judge said Ali had kicked and punched one of the women as she lay on the floor and the injured man had been left with scarring to his head.

Ali admitted offences of unlawful wounding, assault and common assault in relation to that incident and was given concurrent jail terms of 32 months, nine months and two months for those matters.

The court heard that in June 2023 a man, who had been assaulted by Ali, had to barricade himself in a shop and in July 2023 the defendant breached a restraining order and stalked a woman by sending her messages and going to her home.

Mr Grattage said in August 2023 Ali, who claimed to be homeless, was caught burgling a school in Bradford, but thankfully the stolen items were recovered.

After being arrested Ali said he had been “starving” and had done it to get food.

Judge McKone passed further concurrent jail sentences for those other offences and also imposed a 10-year restraining order which bans Ali from contacting the man he attacked at the Bradford house.

She said the robbery victim had since died, but that was nothing to do with Ali’s crime.

“But it was clear, and must have been to you, that he was a very vulnerable man,” said the judge.

She said Ali, formerly of Upper Road, Batley, had effectively followed his target and then pushed him into his home.

“That must have been an extremely frightening experience for him,” said the judge.

Judge McKone said the violence at the house in Bradford must have “absolutely terrifying” for all those involved.

She said Ali was no stranger to the courts, but she accepted that he had endured a traumatic childhood and he had been trying to deal with his drug issues while in custody.