- Thursday, April 25, 2024
By: Sattwik Biswal
A woman was sentenced to three and a half years in jail for her threat to Bradford West MP through a series of email last year.
Sundas Alam, 30, of Princeville Street had threatened Naz Shah in one of the emails to put a “bullet through the head”, which eventually forced the MP fleeing their home in the middle of the night with her children.
Recently, MP Sir David Amess visiting his constituency was stabbed to death, and making a reference to that incident, Judge Sean Morris said politicians “should not have to put up with threats”, the BBC has reported.
Alam, who worked for the probation service then had cloned the emails to make it appear that they were sent by someone else, which resulted in an innocent family being picked by the police in the night and being questioned for 20 hours.
During the trial, Shah said she had received threats before but this one seemed to be a firearms threat and was forced to dial 999.
Judge Morris said this sentence will prove to be a detterent to others in the future.
“There has to be an element of deterrent, especially in the light of recent tragic events”, he was quoted as saying.
“Members of parliament dedicate their lives to the service of their constituents and their country.
“They should not have to put up with threats. It should not be something that goes with the job.”
Detective chief inspector Andy Farrell of Bradford District Police, speaking after the sentencing, said: “We welcome the sentence that Alam has received and hope it serves as a warning to others that threats towards public figures such as MPs are treated seriously and positive action will be taken to ensure offences are investigated thoroughly and robustly.
“West Yorkshire Police is committed to protecting members of the public from threats and harm and works closely with our MPs, to review their security arrangements and consider any additional safety concerns they may have.”
