NASEER LAHER, A COCAINE ADDICT, SENTENCED FOR MUGGING 8-YEAR-OLD GIRL IN BATLEY

In August 2012, Naseer Laher, a 31-year-old cocaine addict from Batley, was sentenced to four years and three months in prison after he robbed an eight-year-old girl in Batley Carr, West Yorkshire. The court heard that Laher cornered the young girl in an alleyway on March 15 and demanded money as she walked to the shop to buy sweets.

Prosecutor Shamaila Quereshi explained, 'Laher approached her around 4.30 pm and asked how much money she had.' The girl showed him her few coins, intended for purchasing sweets from the post office and for sending letters to her brother stationed in Afghanistan. Her purse, which had belonged to her beloved grandmother who had passed away just four weeks earlier, was snatched during the incident.

Laher initially denied the charges, claiming he was elsewhere at the time of the assault, but the victim later identified him at an identity parade. Witnesses saw Laher fleeing the scene after the attack, during which he grabbed her purse and hurt her wrist in the struggle.

According to Ms. Quereshi, the girl's purse has never been recovered, and the girl was left deeply distressed. Her mother described her as 'very brave' for helping police and identifying her attacker, and it was revealed that the girl is now afraid to be alone and reluctant to return to the post office due to the trauma.

The court heard that Laher, who had already been subject to a community order following a previous burglary of a relative’s home, pleaded guilty to robbery in an earlier hearing. Judge Christopher Batty remarked, 'It doesn’t get much lower than that,' and told Laher, 'No doubt she was hugely proud of the fact that she had the purse of her grandmother, who had died only a month before. Little did she know she was going to encounter you, a cocaine addict for many years. She was easy prey to feed your addiction.'

Following the sentencing, Detective Constable Paul Greatorex of Kirklees CID expressed his dismay, stating, 'It is hard to understand what would compel a grown man to rob a child for such a small amount of money.'

The girl’s mother recalled the night of the incident, saying, 'She just came running home, she was a mess. That night she wanted to sleep with me, and she didn’t go to school the next day.' She also emphasized the emotional impact, remarking, 'It is all the more painful because of the sentimental value attached to it.'