Both Douk Deng, a failed asylum seeker from South Sudan, has been jailed for two years after taking a hammer, a hatchet and a kitchen knife to a school in Greater Manchester. The 21-year-old told the court he was “frustrated” over his immigration status and wanted to “create a scene for attention” to aid his bid to stay and work in the UK.
Weapons at Edgar Wood Academy
Deng was arrested after workmen confronted him on the premises of Edgar Wood Academy in Heywood on August 6 last year. A member of the public had earlier raised the alarm after Deng was observed “behaving oddly” in the street nearby, holding a petrol can with a hammer tied to his belt. He was “mumbling” as he walked a full circuit around the school, which was closed for the summer, scanning the building before approaching it. Builders working on site became concerned and called police. Deng was walking away from the premises when he was detained.
Along with the hammer and hatchet, he was found to be in possession of a seven-inch kitchen knife and a jerry can containing half a litre of petrol. The day before, he was spotted acting oddly at another closed school, Holy Family RC and CE College in Rochdale, where he kicked and damaged its intercom.
Defence and background
Sara Haque, defending, said: “He maintains that his actions were not motivated by any desire to injury or harm any person. This was a bizarre and compulsive act lacking in any type of maturity at a time when he was in deep distress having left Sudan and his family in traumatic circumstances. He wanted attention and he was in crisis but he was not motivated by hostility towards children, teachers or the wider public. There is no evidence that he threatened any individual.”
Deng, who has a wife and children, was placed in multiple occupancy housing (HMO) on his arrival in the UK. Ms Haque said: “He found himself in a foreign country with very limited English and unable to work because of his immigration status. He believed and felt no-one was listening to him and no-one was helping him. He felt he had reached the of his ability to cope within the HMO where others in similar circumstances to him had been assisted by the immigration authorities. He became increasingly frustrated that the same was not happening for him. His only wish is to work and find money to support his family.”
Psychiatric reports on the defendant had not identified any major mental health issues, the court heard. Deng, of Heywood, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to a range of offences including criminal damage and possessing weapons and a knife in a public place and on school premises. He was told he must serve up to half his sentence in custody and the remainder on licence.
Judge's comment and police response
Judge Bernadette Baxter told him: “I have no power to order the Home Office to do anything. But in my judgment, given your circumstances as a failed asylum seeker who has been in custody for the best part of a year, the Home Office should be doing something rather than nothing to deal with your status in this country.”
Detectives from Rochdale CID worked thoroughly to investigate Deng, including examining his mobile phone, but found no evidence of a particular motive or intent, said police. Chief superintendent Helen Caldbeck, district commander for Rochdale, said: “I’m incredibly proud of the officers’ response to this incident. They were professional and brave in tackling a suspicious man armed with weapons and immediately confronted Deng to keep the public safe. Thankfully no one was close to coming to harm but this was nevertheless a disturbing incident.”
