Latest news with #IsleworthCrownCourt
Daily Mail
15-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Schizophrenic man, who defence lawyer called 'a bit odd', is cleared of stalking model and 'face of Royal Ascot' Lady Martha Sitwell
A schizophrenic man has been cleared of stalking an aristocrat and model dubbed the 'face of Royal Ascot '. Mirsad Veliji was accused of mounting a campaign of harassment against Lady Martha Sitwell, 45, between April and August 2022. It was alleged he stood in front of her Kensington flat in July 2022 and 'made a strangling noise before watching Ms Sitwell'. On another occasion it was said Veliji 'cycled very close to Ms Sitwell and laughed out loud.' But a jury at Isleworth Crown Court took just over an hour to clear him of two charges of stalking. Earlier Veliji's defence lawyer, Atalanta Sanders, suggested he was 'actually just a man, who may be a bit odd and - as Lady Sitwell agreed - didn't fit in with the South Kensington area. 'What I invite you to do', she added later, 'is to take care not to criminalise behaviour that is odd, that may have been taken out of turn but is actually a man going about his day-to-day business. 'The defence say that you cannot be sure that the events set out by Ms Sitwell haven't been misinterpreted and that they weren't intentionally pursued by Mr Veliji in a manner that amounts to stalking.' She referred jurors to Veliji's schizophrenia diagnosis for which he 'takes injections.' Ms Sanders told how Lady Sitwell 'agreed that South Kensington is a fairly affluent area and that she didn't think she would see him again when she just started really noticing him. 'So, please, ask yourself: isn't is possible that not expecting to see this person who didn't fit in - unaware as we know now that he lived only a few doors down - that seeing him more frequently may have caused this misinterpretation?' She added: 'It is, as the defence suggest, entirely possible this is just a man who behaves slightly strangely, who has mental health problems and may not look like you or me, who Lady Sitwell didn't know lives just down the road. 'I ask you not to criminalise behaviour that otherwise wouldn't be criminal..' Velij from Kensington, was found not guilty of two counts of stalking. The first alleged he caused fear of violence while the second alleged he caused 'alarm or distress'. The defendant, who had been held in custody, appeared relieved as he was acquitted. Jurors previously heard he was earlier convicted of assaulting a woman jogging alone in Chelsea in January 2022. He attacked a second woman in Kensington in May 2022 after he grabbed by the neck, dragged her and tried to punch her near her home. With his long grey hair in a ponytail he appeared in court today accompanied by a mental health intermediary. Questioned by his defence barrister Atalanta Sanders he said Lady Sitwell's fear of him was 'not his fault'. Asked if he remembered staring at her in April 2022, Veliji replied: 'No'. Ms Sanders asked: 'In that time period do you remember wanting to make anyone uncomfortable, that was a lady, near where you live?' 'No, no', Veliji repeated. He claimed he bumped into Lady Sitwell on the street in April 2022 and this was the 'first and last' time he met the socialite. Veliji said she 'put her hand up' adding: 'She was scared and I was scared - she went on her way, I continued on my way', he said. 'Do you remember trying to speak to her near her house in May?', Ms Sanders asked. 'No, no, no - I never tried to speak to her', he replied. Asked if he'd ever 'cycled at a lady on purpose', Veliji again responded: 'No'. John Livingston, prosecuting, asked Veliji: 'Is it your case that everything that she said is a lie?' 'It is a lie, sir, everything what she said is made up apart from when we met', the man said. The prosecutor said Veliji had been convicted following two incidents involving women in 2022. 'Both incidents happened in the area where you lived. The first one involves a women who was jogging alone on Cromwell Road and what I say is that she bumped into you accidentally on the way and then looked back to apologise. 'And then you started to stare at her, you walked back to her and you grabbed her neck for approximately five seconds. 'She was able to break away from you but she had red marks around her neck.' Veliji told jurors: 'It is true, I pleaded guilty.' 'You (also) grabbed a woman who lived in [X] just like Martha Sitwell - you grabbed her by the neck.' Veliji replied: 'They hit me with the arm, both of them, that's why I reacted. 'This is a question of you grabbing (the second woman) by the neck, dragging her head along the railings near her home and intending to punch her - and you pleaded guilty to doing all that. 'The prosecution case is that Martha Sitwell was afraid that you were going to do something very similar to her, do you understand?' 'I could have done it if she had hit me with the arm but with Martha nothing happened like that.' Veliji repeated that he was 'sorry for making Martha scared' but said that being scared 'could happen to anybody, even to me.' Lady Sitwell, ex-wife of baronet Sir George Sitwell and daughter of late gastronome Justin de Blank, Lady Sitwell is dubbed the 'Face of Ascot'. She married former film producer Sir George in 2007 and lived with him at Grade II-listed Weston Hall in Northamptonshire. They divorced in 2017.
Daily Mail
15-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Model and 'face of Royal Ascot' Lady Martha Sitwell plagued by stalker who stood outside Kensington home making 'strangling noises', court hears
An aristocrat dubbed the 'face of Royal Ascot ' was plagued by a stalker who stood outside her home staring at her and making 'strangling noises', a court heard. Mirsad Veliji, 43, allegedly mounted a campaign of harassment against Lady Martha Sitwell, 45, between April and August 2022. He stood in front of her Kensington flat staring in July 2022 and 'made a strangling noise before watching Ms Sitwell', Isleworth Crown Court heard. On another occasion Veliji 'cycled very close to Ms Sitwell and laughed out loud,' it was said. Jurors heard he was earlier convicted of assaulting a woman jogging alone on Cromwell Road, Chelsea in January 2022. Veliji stared at her aggressively and walked towards her before grabbing her neck for five seconds, the court heard. He attacked a second woman near Lexham Gardens in May 2022 after he grabbed by the neck, dragged her and tried to punch her near her home. With his long grey hair in a ponytail he appeared in court accompanied by a mental health intermediary. Questioned by his defence barrister Atalanta Sanders he said Lady Sitwell's fear of him was 'not his fault'. Asked if he remembered staring at her in April 2022, Veliji replied: 'No'. Ms Sanders asked: 'In that time period do you remember wanting to make anyone uncomfortable, that was a lady, near where you live?' 'No, no', Veliji repeated. He claimed he bumped into Lady Sitwell on the street in April 2022 and this was the 'first and last' time he met the socialite. Veliji said she 'put her hand up' adding: 'She was scared and I was scared - she went on her way, I continued on my way', he said. 'Do you remember trying to speak to her near her house in May?', Ms Sanders asked. 'No, no, no - I never tried to speak to her', he replied. Asked if he'd ever 'cycled at a lady on purpose', Veliji again responded: 'No'. John Livingston, prosecuting, asked Veliji: 'Is it your case that everything that she said is a lie?' 'It is a lie, sir, everything what she said is made up apart from when we met', the man said. The prosecutor said Veliji had been convicted following two incidents involving women in 2022. 'Both incidents happened in the area where you lived. The first one involves a women who was jogging alone on Cromwell Road and what I say is that she bumped into you accidentally on the way and then looked back to apologise. 'And then you started to stare at her, you walked back to her and you grabbed her neck for approximately five seconds. 'She was able to break away from you but she had red marks around her neck.' Veliji told jurors: 'It is true, I pleaded guilty.' 'You (also) grabbed a woman who lived in Lexham Gardens just like Martha Sitwell - you grabbed her by the neck.' Veliji replied: 'They hit me with the arm, both of them, that's why I reacted. 'This is a question of you grabbing (the second woman) by the neck, dragging her head along the railings near her home and intending to punch her - and you pleaded guilty to doing all that. 'The prosecution case is that Martha Sitwell was afraid that you were going to do something very similar to her, do you understand?' 'I could have done it if she had hit me with the arm but with Martha nothing happened like that.' Mr Livingston reminded Veliji of the evidence earlier given by Lady Sitwell's former partner, wildlife photographer and TV host Charlie Hamilton James for the prosecution. 'Do you remember hearing Mr Hamilton James give evidence yesterday - the tall gentleman. 'Do you remember him saying that he travelled all the way from Bristol because he was worried about the safety of Martha?' Veliji repeated that he was 'sorry for making Martha scared' but said that being scared 'could happen to anybody, even to me.' In his closing speech, Mr Livingston asked jurors to consider the evidence provided by Mr Hamilton James. 'He knew her well, certainly in the early part of the timespan that we're dealing with. 'He made it very clear: she is no snowflake. 'This is quite a robust woman, she's not a snowflake that's easily frightened or somebody that's easily intimidated. 'The reality is that such was the defendant's behaviour, that to an escalating degree she became increasingly fearful of him. 'It started out with the staring and it went on to the attempts to engage in conversation, it goes on to loitering outside her home. 'Clearly, she was sufficiently worried that she rang up Mr Hamilton James. 'They'd split up at this time - were no longer going out together - he lives in Bristol, she lives in Kensington. 'She told him that she had a stalker - he was obviously sufficiently concerned about the account that she gave that he took two weeks off to come down and stay with her, as he made clear yesterday, to make sure that she was safe and protected.' Veliji, of Kensington, denies two counts of stalking. The first alleges he caused fear of violence while the second alleges he caused 'alarm or distress'. The trial continues.
The Independent
08-05-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Woman accused of having illegal abortion found not guilty
A woman has been found not guilty of having an illegal abortion during the second coronavirus lockdown. Nicola Packer, 45, cried and wiped her eyes with a tissue after she was acquitted by a jury at Isleworth Crown Court in south-west London, of 'unlawfully administering to herself a poison or other noxious thing' with the 'intent to procure a miscarriage'. The trial heard she took abortion medicine at home in November 2020 and later brought the foetus to Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in a backpack. Ms Packer, then 41 , took prescribed medications mifepristone and misoprostol, when she was around 26 weeks pregnant, jurors were told. The legal limit for taking medication at home for an abortion is 10 weeks. Prosecutors alleged that Ms Packer knew she had been pregnant for more than 10 weeks, which she denied. Jurors rejected the prosecution's case to find the 45-year-old not guilty of having an illegal abortion. Ms Packer was supported by five people in the public gallery, with some hugging each other after the verdict was read to the court. Giving evidence during her trial, Ms Packer spoke of her 'shock' and 'surprise' at being pregnant. Ms Packer later broke down in tears as she told the jury of nine women and three men: 'If I had known I was that far along I wouldn't have done it.' She added: 'I wouldn't have put the baby or myself through it.' The typical full gestation term is 40 weeks and the outer limit for abortions in the UK is normally 24 weeks, though there are grounds where there are no limits. Ms Packer did not discover she was pregnant until she took a test on November 2, 2020, the court heard. She took abortion medication on November 6 and went to hospital the following day, having passed a foetus into the toilet, her trial was told. Jurors heard Ms Packer spent the night of November 7 in hospital and was arrested by police the next day. Ms Packer, who sat near her defence team throughout the trial, was supported by five friends in the public gallery, who hugged as the verdict was delivered. Jurors deliberated for more than six hours to reach the unanimous verdict. After the verdict was delivered, Judge Martin Edmunds KC thanked jurors for their attention in the case and said Ms Packer was formally discharged. 'This was an old case, relating to events during 2020, in the Covid pandemic,' Judge Edmunds said. 'It is the prosecution, the CPS who make decisions about whether to pursue criminal cases. 'They do so through guidelines which they have to apply… one of which is the public interest.'
Sky News
08-05-2025
- Health
- Sky News
Woman found not guilty of having illegal abortion as case sparks calls for law reform
A woman has been found not guilty of having an illegal abortion during the second coronavirus lockdown. Nicola Packer, 45, cried as she was acquitted of "unlawfully administering to herself a poison or other noxious thing" with the "intent to procure a miscarriage" at Isleworth Crown Court in southwest London. Ms Packer took abortion medication at home in November 2020. She brought the foetus to a London hospital in a backpack the next day, having passed it in a toilet, the court heard. Jurors were told Ms Packer, then 41, took prescribed medications mifepristone and misoprostol when she was around 26 weeks pregnant. The legal limit for taking medication at home for an abortion is 10 weeks. Prosecutors claimed Ms Packer knew she was more than 10 weeks pregnant, which she denied. Jurors rejected the prosecution's case and found the 45-year-old not guilty. She was supported by five people in the public gallery, who hugged each other after the verdict was delivered. During her trial, Ms Packer spoke of her "surprise" and "shock" at being pregnant - before breaking down in tears as she told the jury: "If I had known I was that far along I wouldn't have done it." "I wouldn't have put the baby or myself through it," she added. The court heard Ms Packer did not find out she was pregnant until taking a test on 2 November 2020, four days before she took the abortion medication. She spent the night of 7 November in hospital, having taken the foetus to the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, and was arrested by police the following day. Judge Martin Edmunds thanked the jurors for their attention in the case after the verdict was delivered. He added: "It is the prosecution, the CPS, who make decisions about whether to pursue criminal cases. They do so through guidelines which they have to apply… one of which is the public interest." Case leads to calls for abortion law reform The case has sparked calls for reform of abortion laws in England and Wales, with the British Pregnancy Advisory Service saying prosecuting women for abortions is "never in the public interest". 2:48 Katie Saxon, chief strategic communications officer, said: "In recent years, we have seen record numbers of women investigated for suspected illegal abortions. "Women are being arrested straight from the hospital ward, their homes searched, and their children taken away. This cannot continue." Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi, who supported Ms Packer in court during the trial, said it is "completely unacceptable" the 45-year-old was "forced to endure the indignity and turmoil of a trial". "The true injustice here is the years of her life stolen by a law written decades before women had the vote, for a 'crime' which doesn't even apply in two nations of the United Kingdom," she said. "This is utterly deplorable, and it is not justice. I do not see how this law can be defended any longer." A government spokesperson said any changes to abortion laws are "a matter of conscience for parliamentarians rather than the government". They added: "We recognise that this is an extremely sensitive issue, and there are strongly held views on all sides of the discussion. That is why, by longstanding convention, any change to the law in this area would be a matter of conscience for parliamentarians rather than the government. "Decisions to prosecute, within existing legislation, are for the CPS and are incredibly rare."
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Yahoo
Woman accused of illegal abortion found not guilty
A woman accused of having an illegal abortion has been cleared by a jury. Nicola Packer, 45, cried as she was acquitted of "unlawfully administering to herself a poison or other noxious thing" with the "intent to procure a miscarriage". Isleworth Crown Court heard she took abortion medicine at home during the coronavirus lockdown, in November 2020, when she was about 26 weeks pregnant. Ms Packer then delivered the foetus and took it to Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in a backpack. The legal limit for taking medication at home to terminate a pregnancy is 10 weeks, while the outer limit for any abortion in England, Scotland and Wales is 24 weeks, apart from in certain circumstances. Ms Packer, who was 41 at the time, took the medications mifepristone and misoprostol, which were prescribed over the phone due to Covid restrictions. Prosecutors alleged that Ms Packer knew she had been pregnant for more than 10 weeks, which she denied. Giving evidence during her trial, Ms Packer spoke of her "shock" and "surprise" at being pregnant. She told the jury: "If I had known I was that far along I wouldn't have done it." She added: "I wouldn't have put the baby or myself through it." Jurors heard Ms Packer spent the night of 7 November in hospital and was arrested by police the next day. Ms Packer was supported by friends in the public gallery, who hugged one another as the verdict was delivered. Jurors deliberated for more than six hours to reach the unanimous verdict. Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to
