Defendants in stabbing of Iran International presenter face court
Two men accused of stabbing an Iran International TV presenter appeared in court on Wednesday in London, a day after being extradited from their native Romania.
Two men accused of stabbing an Iran International TV presenter appeared in court on Wednesday in London, a day after being extradited from their native Romania.
The defendants, Nandito Badea, 19, and George Stana, 23, were arrested in Romania earlier this month at the request of British authorities.
They will appear at the Central Criminal Court of England and Wales on January 17, when their trial will officially begin. The defendants are charged with causing grievous bodily harm with intent.
Pouria Zeraati, a British-Iranian national, was attacked near his home in Wimbledon, southwest London, in March and was hospitalized with injuries to the leg. The incident raised concerns about threats to critics of the Iranian government, with British authorities investigating whether Zeraati was targeted due to his work.
Iran has denied any involvement in the attack.
Acting Commander Helen Flanagan from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command emphasized the importance of the investigation and thanked Romanian authorities for their cooperation. She urged the public not to speculate on the case in order to allow the legal process to unfold.
“I would like to thank our Romanian counterparts for their cooperation on this matter, as well as colleagues from the CPS and NCA who have helped us to reach this point,” she said.
“Now that criminal proceedings are fully active here in the UK, I continue to ask people not to speculate about the case or motivation so that the criminal justice process can ran its course.”
Adam Baillie, a spokesperson for Iran International, previously welcomed the progress of the investigation, noting that the developments were reassuring for journalists facing similar threats.
