JFS school bus abuser in court

A teenager has admitted threatening to stab a group of Jewish schoolchildren whom he verbally abused as they travelled home from school.

The 16-year-old, unnamed for legal reasons, shouted “Jewish scum” at the JFS pupils during the incident on November 10 last year.

He admitted charges of racially aggravated harassment and common assault at Hendon Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday.

Magistrates heard how the unemployed youngster, who was around 6ft 6in tall, boarded a 183 bus in West Hendon with a gang of friends.

They approached the group of teenagers who were on their way home to Golders Green and the youth then called the boys “Jewish scum” and the girls “slags”.

He was heard to say “let’s terrorise these ones” before barging into a 17-year-old boy and threatening to “stab or slash” him, the court was told.

During the hearing, chair of the bench, Ms Claire Goodman, asked the teenager: “Do you think this is funny?” after he laughed at a prosecution lawyer.

Then she told him to remove one of the three hooded jackets he was wearing.

The boy was given a six-month referral order, during which he must attend panel discussions on racism and antisemitism. The magistrate told him: “You are a big lad and it’s scary having people talk to you like that on the way home from school when you don’t know what else is going to happen.

“We are concerned by what you said and why you said it. Words like ‘f***ing Jew’ and ‘Jew scum’. Why are you saying things like that?

“Do you understand why that is particularly worrying to the court and to society to use words like that? It leaves people in fear and it hits very hard.”

He responded: “I don’t know. It’s not cool.”

He was also ordered to pay £20 costs and £50 compensation to the boy he attacked.

Next month he will reappear in court for an anti-social behaviour order (Asbo) hearing related to the incident.

The court had earlier attempted to ban the JC from reporting the hearing, but relented after an in-court appeal from the newspaper’s reporter.

    Last updated: 2:43pm, March 10 2009