Innocent man burned to death by vigilante neighbours who mistook him for paedophile

Bijan Ebrahimi, 44, took pictures of youths vandalising his flower baskets



A court heard he planned to give the images to police as evidence

But a neighbour saw him with a camera and reported him as a paedophile

Police arrested Mr Ebrahimi but let him go when they realised the mistake

But two days after his release he was attacked by vigilante neighbours

Lee James has pleaded guilty to murder after beating Mr Ebrahimi unconscious before dragging him into the street and setting him on fire



Stephen Norley pleaded guilty to assisting an offender



Both will be sentenced at Bristol Crown Court next month



Murdered: Bijan Ebrahimi, 44, was beaten unconscious before being burned to death by neighbours who wrongly believed he was a paedophile

An innocent man was viciously beaten and then burned to death by vigilante neighbours who wrongly believed rumours that he was a paedophile.



Bijan Ebrahimi, a keen gardener, had taken photographs of youths vandalising his hanging baskets and intended to hand them to police as evidence.



But someone saw him with the camera and told police that the 44-year-old, who was registered disabled and unable to work, had taken pictures of children.

Police went to his flat. As officers took Mr Ebrahimi away for questioning, other residents on his estate gathered in the street and chanted, ‘Paedo, paedo’.



He was interviewed at a police station but officers soon realised he had been taking photographs only in an attempt to help catch the local yobs.



Mr Ebrahimi, originally from Iran, was released from custody but two days later, in the early hours of Sunday July 14, his body was found burning in the road.

He had been attacked by Lee James, who lived in the same street in Brislington, Bristol, a court heard.



James, 24, beat Mr Ebrahimi unconscious and then with the help of another neighbour, Stephen Norley, dragged Mr Ebrahimi into the street, doused him in white spirit and set him on fire.



James, who admitted murder, and Norley, 24, who denied murder but admitted assisting his friend, will be sentenced next month at Bristol Crown Court.

The pair had decided to ‘take the law into their own hands’, the court heard. After the hearing, Avon and Somerset Police spokesman Martin Dunscombe said Mr Ebrahimi was an innocent man.



He said: ‘Mr Ebrahimi was arrested on suspicion of a public order offence – breach of the peace – and after being interviewed he was released with no further action taken. We can categorically state he had not taken any indecent images and that nothing of concern had been found on his computer.’



Mr Ebrahimi’s family said police could have done more to prevent ‘a callous act of unimaginable hatred’. They said the convictions of James and Norley ‘represent some measure of justice for Bijan’.

In court: Lee James, pictured left, has pleaded guilty to the murder of Bijan Ebrahim while Stephen Norley, pictured right, pleaded guilty to assisting an offender



Horrific crime: Police officers pictured investigating the scene in Bristol where Bijan Ebrahimi was found burned to death in July this year

But they added: ‘We are gravely concerned that the actions of those men may have been made possible by the failures of the police and others to protect Bijan.’



Six police officers – four constables, a sergeant and an inspector – are being investigated by the Independent Police Complaints Commission for possible gross misconduct over their handling of the case.



Mr Ebrahimi’s family added in a statement: ‘Bijan was a quiet, disabled man whose only joys in life came from his horticultural interests and his cat.



‘Bijan was a caring, loving and unselfish man. He was an excellent uncle and a warm, supportive brother.’



Wrongly accused: Mr Ebrahimi was attacked outside this building in Bristol

Vigilante: Even though Mr Ebrahimi was cleared by police of any wrongdoing, local resident Lee James decided to take the law into his own hands and launched a brutal attack on the 44-year-old

Neighbours described how Mr Ebrahimi had a passion for the flowers and plants he grew in front of his maisonette.



But after youngsters started destroying his garden he began taking pictures to show to the council, who owned his property, and to the police.



Rumours that Mr Ebrahimi was taking pictures of young children quickly circulated in the neighbourhood. It is understood Mr Ebrahimi was subjected to harassment by mobs after James told locals he had taken photos of their children.



One resident, who wanted to remain anonymous, said: ‘On the Thursday evening [before Mr Ebrahimi’s murder] everyone came out and they were calling him a paedophile.



‘There were about 20 people out there all having a say. They had him down as a 100 per cent paedophile.



‘When the police took him away, everyone was cheering. Then he got released back into that.’