BRISTOL, England — Bijan Ebrahimi was an avid gardener who took pictures of local youths as they vandalized his plants. He had intended to hand the photographs to police as evidence of the crime, but something went terribly wrong.
Instead, officers were called when he was seen with the camera taking pictures of children and he was led away for questioning as residents chanted “paedo, paedo.” They believed that he was being taken in for having inappropriate sexual relations with children.
Law enforcement quickly discerned their mistake at the police station and Ebrahimi was released, but rumors had already begun circulating that he was a child abuser and two days later he was beaten unconscious, dragged into the street and set on fire. Ebrahimi died at the scene.
Lee James, 24, pleaded guilty to murder at Bristol Crown Court and his friend Stephen Norley, also 24, admitted assisting James after deciding to “take the law into their own hands”.
The pair will be sentenced next month.
Both the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) and the local council have now launched reviews into the way the case was handled. Six police officers have been served notices of gross misconduct and three have been suspended by Avon and Somerset Police.
