"'It's time to die' and also said 'die, die, die'."
Abdul Muhid, aged 31, of Derby, was jailed for seven years following a vicious hammer attack on two brothers.
Muhid had been with an accomplice when they attacked the victims outside their home. Derby Crown Court heard the ambush was linked to a family feud.
CCTV footage was shown to the court, showing the two men hitting their victims with the weapons before running off.
On October 7, 2018, the two victims had been out watching a boxing match and had returned home at around 6 am.
CCTV footage initially showed four men hiding behind parked cars when they thought they saw the victims return home, but this was a “false alarm.”
When the brothers returned, two men, including Muhid, brandished hammers and attacked them before running off.
The prosecutor Sarah Slater said:
“The two brothers came home and parked up on the side of the road. Two males carrying hammers attacked them.
“One of the males had been identified by the prosecution and that is this defendant. It is clear from the footage that this is a pre-planned attack.
“Both victims say at the time the defendant is heard to say ‘It’s time to die’ and also said ‘die, die, die’.”
The vicious hammer attack left one brother with a fractured skull while the other now suffers from anxiety.
Ms Slater read a victim impact statement which revealed that the brother who suffered a fractured skull has said the attack has affected his family life as he cannot pick up his child.
Muhid pleaded guilty to one count of grievous bodily harm, one count of actual bodily harm and one count of possessing an offensive weapon.
In mitigation, Sarah Munro explained that her client carried out the attack as he thought his family “was going to be attacked that day.” She said:
“For that reason, it is not a good enough reason, but for that reason, he behaved in the way he did.
“There is no excuse to what has been done. He has written a letter to court where he said he is so ashamed of himself.
“He has not been able to sleep properly. He is terribly sorry for the hurt he has caused the victims. He feels he has brought embarrassment to his family.
“He is a very devoted family man. He has suffered the death of his father and is trying to look after the rest of the family. He is humble, has strong family values.”
Ms Munro added that Muhid suffered with mental health.
Judge Shaun Smith QC told the court that the context of this case concerned the involvment of both families. He warned them both to end their feud before someone was “killed.” He said:
“Whatever is happening between the two families must stop.
“It must stop today because if it doesn’t stop somebody is going to end up being killed and if that happens both families will lose people.
“The person who is killed will be gone forever and the person who kills will be locked up for life.”
“I have seen that too many times in my job as a barrister to know the devastating effect it has on both families.
“There is a significant background to this matter, at one point your local MP felt driven to write to the police because of what was happening between your families.
“It’s no excuse for what you did, nothing can excuse what you did, but it sets the tone and background.
“The music has stopped and it stops with you here and you are going to get the most punishment.”
Derby Telegraph reported that Abdul Muhid was sentenced to seven years in prison.