A man who danced around a busy city centre square before suddenly attacking someone with an axe has been jailed.
Sirban Farj, 42, launched the seemingly random attack on another man after initially approaching him to pet his dog.
After the man tried to bring the dog back to him, Farj appeared to get agitated. He then started to take some of his clothes off and began to shout and sing, while dancing around Old Market Square, in Nottingham city centre.
He then suddenly ran at the man while wielding an axe around his head and hit him in the back with the weapon, before using it to repeatedly smash a phone that had fallen out of the victim’s pocket.
Farj, of no fixed address, then threw the axe to the ground and lay face down on the floor as officers quickly attended the scene and arrested him.
The 32-year-old man was taken to Queen’s Medical Centre to receive treatment for minor injuries, following the attack on 19 February 2021.
Farj appeared before Nottingham Crown Court today (3 March 2022), where he was charged with grievous bodily harm without intent and carrying an offensive weapon.
He was sentenced to two years and four months in prison.
Detective Sergeant Lee Cattell, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “This was a completely unprovoked attack on a member of the public, which mercifully didn’t result in them or anyone else sustaining a life-threatening or life-altering injury.
“Farj’s actions that day were completely inexcusable and would’ve been extremely scary to witness for anyone who was in the vicinity of Old Market Square at the time.
“I’d like to commend our officers for responding so quickly and getting what was a very dangerous situation under control.
• Dancing pickpocket jailed after targeting Nottingham city centre
“There is absolutely no place for this type of behaviour on our streets, so we’re extremely pleased to see that Farj has been placed behind bars and that justice has been served in this case.”
