Man who racially abused takeaway staff in court
Categories: Latest News
Friday July 01 2016
BBC News, the Evening Telegraph and The Courier report on the court appearance of a man accused of racially aggravated abuse towards Muslim staff at the Curry Junction takeaway shop in Dundee.
Joel Justice, 25, was in the shop ordering food past 11 o’clock on 29 April when he verbally abused staff in the shop calling them “p****”.
Justice asked the two men working in the shop, Rifa Nezir and Rehan Khan, “Are you from Afghanistan” and then told them to “go back to your own country”.
He also told the pair, “You treat your women like slaves.”
Justice was drunk when he entered the shop and did not notice that staff had called the police following his abuse. When police arrived at 11.50pm, they found Justice standing at the counter in the shop eating his food.
When approached by police about the reported abuse, Justice told them “I just told them p**** to go back to their own country”.
Justice pleaded guilty to acting in a racially aggravated manner intended to cause alarm and distress at Dundee Sheriff Court.
His defence lawyer told the court Justice had an “alcohol addiction” which at times led him to drink to excess.
Sherriff Alastair Brown, deferring sentence until 26 July for an alcohol treatment assessment to be prepared, told him: “It needs to be understood very clearly that this sort of racist abuse has never been something that this court will tolerate.
“I’m aware that there is increased sensitivity now and there is some evidence that there has been an upsurge in racist abuse.
“That has been roundly rejected by the Scottish government and is rejected by this court. Anyone who indulges in it will be dealt with seriously.”
Justice was bailed and will appear before the court later this month for sentencing.