Lee Byer is charged with the murder of 87-year-old Thomas O’Halloran who was stabbed in west London.
Image source, Met policeA man has appeared in court charged with the murder of a grandfather stabbed while riding a mobility scooter in west London.
Thomas O’Halloran, 87, died at the scene on Cayton Road, Greenford, after being attacked just after 16:00 BST on Tuesday.
Lee Byer, 44, of Southall, west London, was remanded in custody at Willesden Magistrates’ Court.
He is expected to appear at the Old Bailey on Tuesday.
On Friday, Mr Byer spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and that he was of no fixed abode.
Malik Aldeiri, defending, made no application for bail.
Image source, PA Media
Mr Byer was not asked to enter pleas to charges of murder and possession of an offensive weapon, a knife.
He was remanded in custody by deputy district judge Ross Cohen. A plea and direction hearing was also set for on 16 September at the Old Bailey.
Outlining the case against Mr Byer, prosecutor Louise Ahmad described the alleged murder as a “vicious attack”.
She said Mr O’Halloran, a grandfather originally from Co Clare in the west of Ireland who was known “throughout the local community”, collapsed from his mobility scooter outside Runnymede Gardens having been stabbed in the chest.
He was found by a member of the public, who telephoned for assistance, she added.
Image source, PA Media
Detectives believe Mr O’Halloran, who was originally from Ennistymon, Co Clare, in the west of Ireland, was stabbed in Western Avenue before managing to travel about 75 yards on his mobility scooter to Runnymede Gardens, where he flagged down a member of the public for help.
Mr O’Halloran, who is Irish, was attacked while on his way to busk, according to a friend.
On Thursday night, about 100 residents packed in to Greenford Community Centre for a meeting with police about local safety.
Ch Supt Sean Wilson told residents extra police patrols in the area would be in place for a week, after which time he would review if they needed to be extended.
However, he was questioned by a number of residents who raised concerns about drug dealing and anti-social behaviour.
Sabah Razak said parents felt “frightened” as their children walked home from school and would ring their child to check they were ok.
‘Just disgusting’
Paying tribute to Mr O’Halloran, she said: “What threat was he posing? What was he doing to anyone? It’s just disgusting.”
Asked what she made of the police reassurances over extra patrols she said she’d heard “a lot of promises” but didn’t know “how much will come out of it”.
She added: “In the last six to seven years, I don’t ring the police anymore.
“If I have to go and confront someone myself, I go and do it because I’ve been told on several occasions, ‘what do you want us to do?'”
Image source, Ronaldo Butrus
Another resident, Naqib Yahya, asked: “Why’s it take someone to be stabbed to have extra patrols?”
He was among several residents who claimed when they contacted police they had not been taken seriously.
Speaking to BBC London after the meeting he said: “The police ask the community for help but they’re quite slow to act on the information passed on.”
Asked what the Metropolitan Police were doing to tackle knife crime, Ch Supt Sean Wilson said the Violent Suppression Unit had dedicated teams who carried out weapons searches and urged residents who find knives on the street to report them.
He promised there would be more officers coming due to the current recruitment drive under the government’s Police Uplift Programme and that new Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, who is due to take up his role next month, had a plan to address concerns.
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