Thug who beat up Orthodox Jews claims he was high on mushrooms

According to a psychiatrist's report, Qureshi is currently presenting with psychotic symptoms, including paranoia.

He has told doctors he is experiencing auditory hallucinations and symptoms of depression as well as anxiety.

Dr Bala Kirshnan told the court: “Mr Qureshi has stated he was hearing command hallucinations at the time he assaulted the victims.

“He also said at the time of the event, he was under the influence of alcohol, magic mushrooms and cocaine. This may play an important role in his likelihood of offending and reoffending.”

Qureshi had not disclosed these details during his trial and has no formal mental health diagnosis, the court heard.

Ms Varinder Hayre, prosecuting, said: “Mr Qureshi approached the victim from the side and hit him on the head.

“CCTV footage shows Qureshi walking past, raising his hand and he struck him on the face with it [the bottle].”

Mr Greenfeld told the court that Qureshi “slammed me in the face”.

He said: “I felt shocked. When I came home I was quite traumatised. It traumatised my kids that their father was slapped in the middle of the street.

“I tried to keep on with my day, but I could not teach for the next few days. I didn’t have the head from the shock.

“I started thinking maybe it’s about my religion. He wanted to attack me about my religion – that I am Jewish.

“My wish is that something should be done (…) I thought as a child in London it was a peaceful and safe place.”

Mr Lipschitz was walking along Stamford Hill towards his local synagogue when Qureshi punched him in the face, the court heard.

Ms Hayre said: “He came from his blind side and struck him with tremendous power. As a result his head slammed into a wall with such force that he lost consciousness for several minutes.”

CCTV footage shown in court showed him lying on the floor motionless.

Mr Lipschitz suffered four fractures in his foot, a sprained ankle, bruising to his face, and pain in his ear. He suffered dizzy spells for two weeks prior to the attack.

He said he had “no recollection of what happened” but woke up with marks all the way down his face. He was helped by members of the public and taken to Homerton Hospital.

Explaining the impact of the attack, Mr Lipschitz said: “I felt he tormented me physically. I was in severe pain and mentally traumatised, I am still traumatised.

“There is something called PTSD, I have never experienced it before but I cannot walk in the street. I used to be strong and tall and confident, and now I am a cowardly wreck. I jump and I am scared.”

The 14-year-old boy said in a statement he was slapped in the face on his way to evening school.

“I was a bit scared. He didn’t say anything to me, or I him. It is not good for me or anyone who is Jewish.”

Qureshi admitted carrying out two of the attacks but denied they were religiously motivated.

Asked why the individuals he attacked were all Jewish he said: “It was just coincidence. I was not in the right frame of mind. I’ve got nothing against Jewish people.”

Qureshi claimed he made the almost 200-mile trip to London to visit family.

On the evening of the attacks he claimed to be shopping for food before sightseeing at Highgate Cemetery.

Qureshi told the court: “I didn’t intend any harm and would like to apologise for any harm or distress caused. There was no real intention to cause harm.”

He admitted causing grievous bodily harm to Mr Lipschitz and assaulting Mr Greenfeld by beating but denied the attacks were religiously motivated.

Qureshi further denied religiously aggravated common assault against the boy.

He was convicted of carrying out three religiously motivated attacks following a trial at Stratford Magistrates Court last month.

Qureshi was committed to Wood Green Crown Court for sentence after a judge said he chose his victims “due to their membership of that group”.

He appeared in court from HMP Pentonville today wearing a grey tracksuit as Judge Noel Lucas, KC, adjourned the hearing until 22 December.

The judge said: “The offences he has been convicted of are very serious. They are the sort of offences which are likely to attract a significant custodial sentence.

“I hope the public understand the difficulties the court faces when there is medical evidence to show that he is unwell and unable to represent his own interests.”

DCI Yasmin Lalanie earlier said: “Ihave made my position clear, I will not tolerate hate crime of any form anywhere in London.

“The Metropolitan Police service has a zero-tolerance policy for hate crime. We want to build safe and strong communities where people say no to hate crime.

“I would like to thank the victims for supporting the prosecution, Shonrim, Hackney IAG Chair and the Crown Prosecution Service. Together we have achieved the best outcome for us in the pursuit of justice.

“We have worked together to ensure that our message is loud and clear we; will not tolerate hate crime. Do not come to Stamford Hill to commit any crime against our community - we will hold you to account.

“I would like to extend my sincere thanks to (prosecutor) Varinder Hayre who has worked relentlessly on this with us every step of the way to achieve this exceptional outcome for our victims and our community.”