Two Romanians who participated in a targeted knife attack on a television journalist in London on behalf of the Iranian state have been sentenced to prison. Pouria Zeraati, a journalist for the Persian-language channel Iran International, which is critical of the Tehran regime, was stabbed three times outside his home in Wimbledon, leaving him bleeding in the street.
Sentencing at the Old Bailey
At the Old Bailey on Friday, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb sentenced Nandito Badea, 21, to eight years and George Stana, 25, to 12 years for wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. The judge stated that the evidence overwhelmingly pointed to the attack being carried out on behalf of the Iranian regime.
Cheema-Grubb said: “I am sure that this was an attack carried out for and for the benefit of a foreign power. Pouria Zeraati was a well-known critic of the regime and he had previously been subjected to threats, as had members of his family.”
Details of the Attack
Zeraati was stabbed three times in the thigh on 29 March 2024 in what prosecutors described as a planned attack preceded by reconnaissance and ordered by a third party acting on behalf of the Iranian state. Badea and another man, David Andrei, who remains in Romania and was not on trial, crowded the victim, and one of them stabbed him multiple times. Stana waited in a Mazda getaway car, which was spotted on CCTV during hostile reconnaissance before the attack.
Zeraati told the Metropolitan Police in a victim impact statement that the incident left him scared and anxious, forcing him to relocate abroad for fear of reprisals. Badea and Andrei visited his property eight times across five dates and had flown into the UK expressly for the attack, which prosecutors believed was planned for over a year.
Background and Reactions
The court heard that Iran International, based in London, is critical of the Iranian regime and has been designated as a terrorist organisation by Iran. Zeraati was a high-profile face on the channel, and a billboard of his face with a “Wanted: Dead or Alive” message had been seen in Tehran. The attackers were seen laughing as they fled to Heathrow and flew to Geneva.
Stana's barrister, Peter Caldwell KC, argued that Stana was functionally illiterate and unaware of current affairs, so could not have known he was operating on behalf of Iran. Badea's barrister, David Spens KC, argued that the court could not be sure it was his client who stabbed Zeraati.
Chief Superintendent Kris Wright, head of protective security operations for Counter-Terrorism Policing London, said: “Our recent casework shows an increasing use of so-called ‘proxies’ by hostile foreign states to conduct illegal activity and attacks in the UK. But this case, and others, show that we will not tolerate this and that we will work with our partners in the UK and internationally to identify those involved and bring them to justice.”
