An illegal immigrant has been jailed for at least 25 years for murdering a bank customer at random shortly after angrily complaining about his refused asylum application.
Somali national Haybe Cabdiraxmaan Nur, who paid 400 euros to travel to the UK last year, could be seen on multiple CCTV cameras attacking Gurvinder Singh Johal with a black-handled kitchen knife at a Lloyds Bank branch in Derby in May.
Derby Crown Court heard Nur had called charity Migrant Help less than two hours before the killing, saying he was “going to kill 500 people”, later suggesting he was going to target “doctors, police or people working at the Home Office”.
The 47-year-old had claimed asylum in October last year shortly after arriving in the UK, which was rejected by the Home Office because he had arrived “voluntarily” – a decision he later appealed.
Jailing Nur for life on Wednesday, Judge Shaun Smith KC told the defendant the murder was a “brutal and callous act”.
He added: “It was a real-life horror film for everyone connected to Mr Johal and everyone who had the misfortune of witnessing your wicked act.”
The court heard Nur was known to police in Italy, Germany, The Netherlands and Luxembourg when he arrived in the UK, including for offences such as assault and robbery.
CCTV of the killing was played to the court, with distressed family members of Mr Johal having to leave the room in tears.
Prosecutor Louis Malby KC said Nur also told Migrant Help he would go live on social media to “talk about how rubbish the UK is”.
A victim impact statement read by the prosecutor on behalf of Mr Johal’s family described him as a “devoted husband, loving father, cherished brother and loyal friend”.
The family said: “Our lives didn’t just change, they shattered. The future now feels like a life sentence of grief.
“Our family is broken. The light in our family has been extinguished.”
Addressing the impact on Mr Johal’s children, the statement added: “They say a monster took daddy away.
“He will never understand the depth of destruction he has caused. He is no man. He is nothing.
“May you or your soul never rest in peace.”
