British police have announced they take no action against a Muslim taxi driver who threatened “any mother f**ker wants to convert to f**king Christianity, we’re both gonna f**k you up the a**e” in a viral video.

41-year-old Zaheer Hussain shot the video, which went viral in December 2018, alongside a laughing companion in a car in Preston, Lancashire.

Press reports on the video are short on details, with one downplaying the rant as merely “criticising ‘anyone who converts’ to Christianity”, but copies can still be found on social media.

The footage shows Hussain telling the camera, “Bruv, listen… any motherf**ker wants to convert to f**king Christianity, we’re both gonna f**k you up the a**e, you under-f**king-stand? … We’re gonna f**ck you up the a**e; we’re gonna come to f**cking [place name], and we’re gonna f**ck you, f**ck you up the [unintelligible],” as he simulates an act of sexual assault.

Over the course of his rant, extended sections of which are in a foreign language, he also demands “Why you f**king converting for [sic], you motherf**kers? Huh? Why you f**cking — why would you want to become a Christian? You f**king [unintelligible] s**t motherf**kers.”

Apparently his comments that white people would "all geddit" were taken out of context https://t.co/uJeQpS3BTk — Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) August 7, 2017

Hussain was reported to Lancashire Constabulary by a Christian woman from Preston, who said “it frightens me now to identify myself as a Christian to someone that I don’t know” and that it was “sad that I have to hide my religion.”

“This man’s dangerous views on something so normal like people changing religions is unacceptable, she added.

“His threats to sexually assault those who convert to Christianity is the heart of hate speech.

“To me, he is displaying extremist tendencies and is encouraging violence.

“I’m genuinely concerned for the welfare of the public who may not be aware of his extreme views.”

Under Islamic law, enforced by the state in many Muslim-majority countries, the penalty for leaving Islam is death.

"Do not post anything which could be considered offensive" – Police hunt down Facebook users who made "offensive" comments about Muslim grooming gangs online. #Priorities https://t.co/ik0Vr9txvU — Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) January 13, 2018

The police, however, ultimately opted to take no action against Hussain or four other men interviewed in connection with the video, apparently accepting his claims that he only intended for the video to be seen by a few friends, and that there was “therefore no evidence to prove that the arrested man had any intention to incite or stir up religious hatred amongst the general public”, to quote a local report.

“A separate offence of sending a grossly offensive/indecent or menacing message by a public communication network” was also considered, according to the same report, but prosecutors decided “that it did not meet the evidential test for a criminal offence.”

Hussain’s generous treatment by the authorities contrasts sharply with that meted out to Scottish comedian Markus Meechan, better known as Count Dankula, who was arrested, charged, and convicted in a trial without a jury for causing gross offence with a viral video in which he trained his girlfriend’s pug dog to imitate the “least cute thing that I could think of, which is a Nazi” — despite his having also told the authorities it was only intended for a small circle of friends.

Scots Comedian Convicted for ‘Offensive’ Pug Joke: ‘A Very, Very Dark Day in Regards to Freedom of Speech’ https://t.co/IzAPddsh6U — Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) March 21, 2018

Follow Jack Montgomery on Twitter: @JackBMontgomery