Man jailed for gang attack on ex-Indian general
A man from the Black Country has been jailed for 10 years for his part in a gang attack on a retired Indian military lieutenant general.
Lieutenant General Kuldeep Singh Brar was out walking with his wife near Marble Arch in London when he was ambushed.
The 78-year-old victim was slashed in the neck. Lakhbir Singh, aged 26, of Crocketts Lane, Smethwick, was the latest man to be sentenced for the attack.
The Sikh man, who was extradited from Italy by counter-terrorism lawyers, was jailed for ten years for grievous bodily harm with intent at Southwark Crown Court.
The defendant, along with a group of men who have already been convicted for their part in the attack, is believed to have deliberately set out to attack Mr Brar in retaliation for events that occurred in India during his military career, which included an operation against Sikh militants in Amritsar in 1984.
Three Sikh men and a woman were jailed for their part in the attack in December last year.
Mandeep Singh Sandhu, 35, of Great Barr, Birmingham, and Dilbag Singh, 37, of no fixed abode, were sentenced to 14 years in prison while Harjit Kaur, 39, of Hayes, Middlesex, was jailed for 11 years.
Another man, Barjinder Singh Sangha, 34, of Wolverhampton, had previously pleaded guilty to wounding with intent and was sentenced to 10 and a half years. They were all found guilty of wounding with intent following a trial at Southwark Crown Court in July last year after a jury took just an hour to convict them.
Having become aware of Mr Brar's presence in the UK, the group travelled to London on September 28 and 29 in 2012 and carried out reconnaissance of the area where he was staying.
On September 30, Harjit Kaur followed the Brars around London and provided the group of men with regular updates on their mobile phones about the couple's movements and locations. This enabled Lakhbir Singh and the group to intercept and assault the Brars as they were towards their hotel following an evening out.
As the couple passed the group, Sangha grabbed Mr Brar's wife, 68-year-old Meena, and held her by the throat against a wall, while the others attacked Mr Brar.
Sangha then joined the others in attacking Mr Brar, who was fighting back in self-defence. Sangha drew a knife and slashed at Mr Brar's neck. At this point the assailants fled on foot towards Oxford Street, leaving Mr Brar lying on the ground seriously injured.
Lakhbir Singh handed himself into a local police station in Ascoli, Italy and was arrested on February 19 by Italian authorities in connection with the attack.
