'Racist' jailed for abusing Muslims at mosque, including threatening to 'slit throat' of five-year-old boy

A man who threatened to behead and blow up Muslims as they attended a family event at a mosque –including gesturing to slit the throat of a five-year-old – has been jailed for four years.

Alexander Bolam waited outside Heaton Mosque in Tyneside as families collected children from an event, abusing them and threatening them.

The 33-year-old became aggressive, threatening to 'cut your heads off', 'behead you all' and 'blow you all up', before pushing one man and then urinating in the door of the mosque.

Bolam, from High Heaton, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, who has 26 previous convictions, has now been jailed for four years and given an extended licence period of a further three years after pleading guilty to racially aggravated assault, racially aggravated damage and making threats to kill.

Read more: 'Countryfile' 'saddened' after Muslim hiking group targeted by racist trolls

Newcastle Crown Court heard that Bolam, who is believed to have previously shown a hatred for followed of Islam on social media, may have borne a grudge because a man he believed his former partner had cheated on him with was a Muslim.

Prosecutor Rachel Glover told the court that Bolam started talking to one of the victims, claiming he wanted to know about the religion, then went on to say: "You lot hate other people, you lot hate everybody" and claim he knew "people on Shields Road that are terrorists".

The man went inside to warn the imam of his conduct, the court heard, but Bolam then started shouting at the man's brother, who was with two five-year-olds.

Read more: Inspiration for Dracula 'may have cried tears of blood', claims research

Bolam's comments included him saying he was a Christian, and calling the man "you f****** Muslims taking over my country", before he said: "I'm going to cut your heads off, I'm going to behead you all, I'm going to blow you all up."

Glover told the court: "He turned to one of the five-year-old boys and did a hand motion across his neck gesturing that he was cutting his neck."

Bolam then pushed and shoved the man before urinating in the door of the mosque, she said.

He was arrested a short time later and was found to be intoxicated.

In a victim impact statement, the brothers said they had honestly believed Bolam was going to kill them.

"Since the incident we are living in fear and the actions have completely changed our lives," their statement said.

"The terror we felt when he bent down towards (the five-year-old), nose to nose and doing a hand gesture and making the comments he was making caused a great deal of trauma to all of us."

"Growing up in Heaton we have a sense of community and Bolam has completely ruined it and taken away the safe place for the community and to make it worse he urinated over a place of worship."

"Bolam claimed he spoke for the British public and it was his country and he said it was the right thing to do. That's not the case. The community generally were concerned for the behaviour and he doesn't represent them."

They added: "We believe he is a racist and his disgraceful actions have changed everybody's lives and it had a devastating effect."

Read more: 'Silenced!' Muslim MP shut down in Parliament while asking about 'government's disgusting racism

Jailing Bolam, Judge Julie Clemitson described it has a "shameful episode" and also imposed an indefinite restraining order banning him from attending at, or loitering near, any mosque in England and Wales.

She said the whole episode was made worse by the presence of children, and labelled him urinating "a filthy act of desecration", adding that his behaviour had had a "profound impact".

Matthew Purves, defending, said: "He is ashamed and finds it disgusting, the way he behaved. All he can do is seek to apologise about what he has put them through.

"He was in a drunken stupor and engaged in the most horrific manner with insults towards wholly innocent people going about their lawful, happy lives. He will have terrified them, he recognises that."

The court heard Bolam has mental health issues and a difficult upbringing, and references from neighbours and his employer showed a different side to his character.