A businessman who rammed a cyclist off the road in a ‘revenge’ attack for damaging his wing mirror has been spared jail.
Victim Wadea Taibi had been cycling down Moscow Road in Bayswater, west London, in February 2022 when Asif Laher, 55, ‘pulled right in front of him on his side of the road’.
When Mr Taibi stopped, the pair got into a short altercation with Laher becoming ‘aggressive’, starting to bang his steering wheel and swear and shout.
At this point the victim ‘tried to pull out Laher’s wing mirror’ which ended up breaking, although he claimed he had not intended to damage the car.
Mr Taibi was then forced to ‘pedal for his life’ as the driver started ‘revving and screeching’ the engine, before chasing after him in his silver Mercedes.
The bonnet of Laher’s car ploughed into Mr Taibi and the next thing he remembers is lying on the floor with a woman stood over him.
He was rushed to hospital where he was found to have suffered a number of injuries including a laceration to the left ear and wounds on both his wrists and right ankle.
Laher, of Watford, Hertfordshire, admitted one count of causing injury by dangerous driving at Southwark Crown Court and was handed a suspended prison sentence.
Asif Laher, 55, (pictured) pleaded guilty to causing injury by dangerous driving and received a 20-month suspended sentence
Andrew Judge, prosecuting, said: ‘On 5 February 2022 Mr Taibi was driving his bike down Moscow Road.
‘On the other side of the road a Silver Mercedes was being driven by Mr Laher. Mr Taibi describes that the defendant pulled right in front of him onto his side of the road, causing him to stop.
‘The defendant said ‘go f*** yourself’ among other things. He banged on the steering wheel and was acting aggressively. The defendant can be seen getting angry, swearing and shouting.’
‘Mr Taibi tried to pull the mirror out, causing damage. He did not intend to cause damage to the car.’
Mr Taibi said he then fled the scene on his bike, fearing what Laher would do.
In a statement he said: ‘I started peddling for dear life, like I know this guy is coming for me.’
Mr Judge said: ‘He could hear the car revving and screeching behind him. He felt the impact from behind. He can’t remember much, except for lying on the floor and a woman standing over him.’
The incident happened on Moscow Road in Bayswater (pictured) in February 2022
Mr Taibi was treated at St Mary’s trauma unit for multiple injuries, including lacerations to his ear, wrists, and ankle.
He also suffered bruising and swelling to his head and ears, with debris found in his ear canal.
In a victim impact statement Mr Taibi said: ‘I have issues with my back. It’s never been quite right since the incident. My lower back still aches every day. I get shooting pain down my legs every day.’
‘The pain in my back wakes me up at night and I struggle to get back to sleep.’
He says that he now suffers from episodes of dizziness.
‘It makes me feel vulnerable and helpless. I have stopped doing a lot of things. I have frequent dizzy episodes in front of my friends who are worried about me.’
‘I have issues with my memory. I now consider myself very forgetful. I now get up and forget what I was intending to do.’
‘I have a 1.5 inch scar on the left side of my forehead. I have struggled to come to terms with the change in my appearance. I am unable to do the hobbies I used to enjoy.
‘I haven’t cycled since the incident. It is something I used to love doing. It was a major part of my life and also how I got around London. I felt that it was all my fault even though it was not.’
Mr Judge said: ‘We submit that this was a deliberate course of dangerous driving.’
John Kearney, defending, said Laher is ‘otherwise a very decent individual.’
Laher runs a business that would fail if he were to go to prison, he said.
‘That would affect not just him but his employees as well. If he was given a term of imprisonment his business would become immediately unviable.’
‘His business is everything to him. It is everything to a lot of other people as well.’
Judge Ian Bourne KC emphasised the significant delays in the case when passing sentence.
‘The CPS clearly had a number of matters they needed to consider in relation to this case.’
Referring to CCTV footage shown in court the judge said: ‘It is apparent that the cyclist actually came on the outside of your car on the open side of the road, and there he interfered with your wing mirror and he broke your wing mirror and then left the scene, cycling very fast as he made his way away from your car.
‘You had a short interaction with him where bad language was exchanged, and you then pursued him in your car at speed.
‘I accept that it is not possible to assess exactly what speed you were doing. The bonnet of your car collided with the rear of the cycle,’ said the judge.
Mr Laher will have to complete 30 days of rehabilitation requirements, as well as 200 days of unpaid work.
He will also have to pay £1,600 in compensation to Mr Taibi, and was disqualified from driving for two years.