CCTV cameras from inside HMP Fosse Way in Leicestershire caught the moments before and after two inmates brutally killed another inmate in his cell in just 37-seconds
A prisoner was caught on CCTV smirking seconds before battering a fellow inmate to death.
On August 20 last year Ashirie Smith, 19, and Thierry Robinson, 21, entered Mahir Abdulrahman’s cell and brutally attacked him at HMP Fosse Way in Leicestershire. The 31-year-old victim was found unresponsive by a female prison officer with horrific injuries and suffering a cardiac arrest at at 7:45am.
Police and East Midlands Ambulance Service had been called to the prison but Mahir Abdulrahman was pronounced deceased at the scene around an hour later. A post mortem later revealing he had suffered injuries including swelling to his right cheek and on the left side of his neck and deep bruising to his brain and facial tissue.
The cause of death was determined as a sub arachnoid basal haemorrhage – bleeding to the area of the brain.
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CCTV from the prison shared by Leicestershire Police captures the moments before and after the brutal attack. It showed showed that Mahir Abdulrahman’s cell had been unlocked in the morning by a prison officer who had then continued on their rounds.
It then showed Robinson smirking in the corridor outside Smith’s cell before emerging topless and entering Abdulrahman’s cell. Smith and Robinson emerge and calmly walk away from the cell just 37 seconds later, leaving Abdulrahman to die. Smith was then seen to re-enter the cell and exit again shortly after having carried out the vicious assault.
Smith was sentenced on Thursday May 29 at Leicester Crown Court after being found guilty of the murder of Mahir Abdulrahman, who was also known as Mahir Mohamed, following trial. He was sentenced to life imprisonment to serve a minimum of 17.5 years.
Robinson was found not guilty of murder but found guilty of the manslaughter of Mahir Abdulrahman following the trial. He was sentenced to 11 years imprisonment. A third defendant Shaan Karim, 38, was found not guilty of murder and not guilty of manslaughter.
Detective Inspector Mark Parish, from the East Midlands Special Operations Unit, said: “The injuries suffered by Mahir Abdulrahman showed a serious, sustained attack had taken place which ultimately led to his death.
“Thanks to the hard work of the investigation team, Smith and Robinson have been convicted in court and will now have to face responsibility for their actions.”
Serco Prison Director Wyn Jones said: “Any death in prison is a tragedy but the murder of Mr Abdulrahman was a heinous act. My thoughts remain with his family and those affected by his untimely death. Since the tragedy, our focus has been to bring those responsible to justice by working with the police to secure a conviction. I hope the verdicts will bring closure for his family.”