“This was a brutal attack on a man in a shop"
Abdul Wahab, aged 29, of Birmingham, was jailed for 21 years for carrying out a brutal hammer attack on a customer in a shop.
In a bid to evade justice, he then fled abroad.
West Midlands Police compiled CCTV evidence which proved to be vital in the case.
CCTV footage captured the moment Wahab ran into the store in Stratford Road, Sparkhill, Birmingham, with a hammer at 2 pm on February 21, 2024.
He violently battered the victim, who was in his 20s.
The victim suffered bleeding on the brain and swelling which could have been fatal. He had to have metal plates inserted into his skull and jaw.
Footage also showed Wahab walking through a park where he disposed of the hammer in a lake.
Wahab was also captured on CCTV at Heathrow Airport. He booked a flight shortly after the attack and was at the airport within hours, taking a flight to Abu Dhabi before going to Pakistan.
Wahab returned to the UK on March 26 and police arrested him at the airport.
He did not give evidence at Birmingham Crown Court.
But comments Wahab made to officers and a probation officer suggested the brutal attack was committed out of some sort of “revenge”.
Wahab previously pleaded guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent and possession of an offensive weapon but was found guilty of attempted murder by a jury.
Passing sentence, Judge Peter Carr said:
“On the day in question, you left your home and you were the passenger in a Fiat Panda.
“When the car got to the shop where (the victim) was a customer it is a reasonable inference on the evidence you saw him and decided to attack him.
“The Fiat Panda circled around and could be seen on CCTV circling around in Stratford Road in the direction of the shop. You got out of the Panda which was parked in a road off Stratford Road, close by.
“You had with you a hammer. You ran into the shop and began to attack him. There was CCTV from inside the shop. From that could be seen there were what could be described as heavy blows raining down on him.
“Six or seven blows, most if not all while he was defenceless on the ground and to a particularly vulnerable part of the body.
“You ran off, went home, collected your belongings and proceeded to purchase a ticket to Pakistan.”
He was sentenced to 21 years in prison.
After sentencing, Detective Constable Sam Higginson, from West Midlands Police’s Complex Investigation Team at Force CID, said:
“This was a brutal attack on a man in a shop in the middle of the day.
“The man suffered serious head injuries including a bleed to the brain and had metal plates fitted in his skull.
“He was in hospital for more than a month.
“Wahab then fled the country in a desperate bid to escape justice. Fortunately, we arrested him on his return to the UK.
“This sentence sends out a clear message to perpetrators who act in this way. We will find you, you will be convicted and you will spend many years behind bars.”
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