Sheriff Court: Man jailed for ripping veil from Muslim woman
A man who ripped off a Muslim woman's religious veil and threw it on the ground has been jailed for two years.
William Baikie grabbed the religious covering, known as a hijab, from 26-year-old Anwar Alqahtani as she walked to get a train from Glasgow's Central Station.
Miss Alqahtani, who wears the hijab to protect her modesty as part of her religion, had to use another piece of clothing to cover her face after the veil was ripped as Baikie pulled it from her.
Baikie, 26, ran off after the attack but was later arrested by police after being identified through CCTV.
Miss Alqahtani, who had come to Scotland from Saudi Arabia to study a masters degree, has now quit her studies and is afraid to leave the house as a result of the attack.
Sentencing Baikie at Glasgow Sheriff Court on Monday, Sheriff Lindsay Wood told him that what he did was an "absolute disgrace".
Sheriff Wood added: "The offence you committed was a shameful one. You are a man who has a number of racist convictions and you knew full well how offensive the act would have been to the lady."
The dad-of-two, whose address was given as HMP Barlinnie, admitted racially assaulting Miss Alqahtani by forcibly removing her veil at Hope Street, Glasgow, on April 27.
Prosecutor Iain Bradley told the court that Miss Alqahtani was walking nearby Central Station when Baikie started grabbing at her from nowhere.
Mr Bradley said: "The accused walked towards her on her right hand side, said nothing to her and pulled the veil from her face and threw it on to the ground. He then walked off along Hope street.
"The force of what he did damaged the hijab and it would not now cover her face so she had to find another item of clothing to cover her.
"The incident was totally without warning. Miss Alqahtani had never seen this man before."
The student reported the incident to the police who later identified Baikie, who has previous convictions for racist behaviour, from the station's CCTV footage.
He was arrested at his home and later interviewed but denied any knowledge of the incident at that time.
Mr Bradley said: "This thoughtless, disrespectful act has had a very serious and profound effect on Miss Alqahtani.
"She and her husband follow the Qur'an very strictly and it is highly offensive for anybody, particularly a man, to have sight of her face in public.
"She now feels that she has lost her independence as she is afraid to go out on her own in case it happens again. She is effectively house bound as a result of what the accused did."
Defence lawyer Ken Sinclair told the court that his client was drunk at the time of the attack and can offer no explanation for what he did.
Mr Sinclair said: "He appreciates that such behaviour is totally unacceptable and he is deeply ashamed of what he did."
