Psychotic Who Stabbed Social Worker Carrying out Welfare Checks on 3 Children Sentenced

Judge says it was 'pure chance' unprovoked attack was not lethal

A still from a police body-worn camera of Sulai Man, who was armed with a knife, being tackled by a police officer in a block of flats in Wood Green, north London, on Aug. 6, 2021. Metropolitan Police

LONDON—A psychotic man who tried to kill a social worker who was conducting welfare checks on three children who were being home schooled during a COVID-19 lockdown has been given an indefinite hospital and restriction order.

Sulai Man, 34, was convicted in October of the attempted murder of 61-year-old Themba Nkomo, who was attacked in the hallway outside a flat in Wood Green, north London, on Aug. 6, 2021.

Man was also convicted of wounding police constables David Turpin and Luke Smith with intent.

They had forced entry to the flat but were unaware Man—who was also known as Sulai Bukhari—was lurking in the corridor waiting to attack Nkomo, a Haringey Council social worker, who was stabbed eight times.

Images from their body-worn cameras showed the chaotic scene as they ran back out into the hallway to rescue Nkomo and then chased Man—who was wearing a mask and a black hoodie—before arresting and handcuffing him.

On Monday the Old Bailey heard Man had been diagnosed, since his arrest, as suffering from schizophrenia which included “disordered thinking” and “paranoid delusions” about being persecuted by Haringey social services.

‘Planned and Potentially Lethal Attack’

Sentencing Man to be detained in a secure mental hospital, Judge Michael Topolski, KC, said, “This was a planned and potentially lethal attack ... it was pure chance that one of the eight wounds Mr. Nkomo suffered did not cause serious injury.”

The trial at the Old Bailey heard Man had a long-running dispute with Haringey Council’s social services department, which had repeatedly sought to gain access to the flat to check on the children during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns.

The trial heard there had been hundreds of emails between Man and social services about the issue of them conducting welfare checks on the children, who cannot be identified for legal reasons.

Man told the trial because the children were autistic he feared they would be classed as Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) in the event of them catching COVID-19.

A still from body-worn camera footage of Sulai Man being chased by police officers after he stabbed a social worker in a block of flats in Wood Green, north London, on Aug. 6, 2021. Metropolitan Police

He said he had read a BBC article in March 2021 that suggested during the pandemic more than 500 people with learning disabilities had been classed as DNR without their families being consulted.

During the pandemic the children were forbidden from going outside, even for a walk in the park or to get some sunshine in the height of summer.

Man said of the flat: “It was a bubble. Everything they needed was in that bubble and that included love and care.”

When he gave evidence during the trial Man repeatedly referred to the police as the “private army” of Haringey Council.

The jury was shown body camera footage from police officers as they forced entry into the flat after failing to persuade a woman to open the door.

Man had gone outside before the police arrived and was lurking in a communal area, wearing a mask and a black hoodie, and clutching a Swiss army-style knife in his hand.

Suddenly, after the police gained entry to the flat using bolt cutters to cut a chain on the door, Man attacked Nkomo, who had been left in the hallway by the front door.

The defendant described the attack on Nkomo and the police officers as a “moment of desperation.”

But on Monday, Topolski said it was an “unprovoked attack” during a psychotic episode and he said Man would need significant treatment in a mental hospital and would have to stay there “for a long time.”

He said he could only be released by the secretary of state or by a mental health tribunal if they were satisfied he no longer posed a threat to the public.

‘Psychotic View of the World’

Topolski said psychologists agreed Man had suffered from undiagnosed mental illness since his teens and he said, “The defendant’s view of the world ... is a psychotic view of the world.”

After Man was convicted in October, Topolski praised social workers who he said were often “vilified,” and he went on to thank Nkomo for his “distinguished career,” which was ended by the attack because it had left him too frightened.

Haringey Council’s cabinet member for children, schools, and families, Zena Brabazon, said in a statement emailed to The Epoch Times, “This was a horrific incident and our social workers, like any other professional, have the right to do their job without the fear of violence and abuse.”

She said, “We have a very strong and committed team of social workers who have worked tirelessly through the pandemic to support the needs of families and children and to keep them safe.”

Brabazon added: “This incident only highlights again the dangers that our hard-working staff have to encounter on a daily basis. The safety of our social workers remains of paramount importance, including our zero-tolerance policy to violence to ensure staff have the support they need.”