Thugs attack mosque worshipper on his way home in Birmingham’s Kings Heath suburb

Police are investigating after a pensioner was assaulted by three men on his way home from a mosque in Kings Heath.

The victim, aged 73, was walking along York Road, when three men got out of a black vehicle which was parked on the street.

One of the men ran up to the victim and kicked him in the back, causing him to fall and hit his head on a display board. The men then fled.

The victim was taken to hospital with a broken hand and cuts to his face after the attack, which happened at around 11pm yesterday.

Video of the incident circulating online appears to show two men approach the elderly man from behind before jump kicking him in the back.  One of the thugs is seen running up to the victim – who is walking with his back turned to the attackers – with what appears to be a motorbike helmet in his hand.

Both men are heard whooping before the vicious attack as they attempt to illicit a response from the victim. In the CCTV video’s audio, they can be heard shouting what appears to be the phrase “Oi, yo r*****d!”, a racist slur often directed at Muslims and Sikhs – before the violent attack, which causes the victim to crash land into sandwich boards outside Fletchers Bar & Eatery.

Another video shows the victim with blood streaming down his face as members of the public attempt to assist him.

Although this is the second attack against a Muslim man in Birmingham during Ramadan, West Midlands Police are adamant the incident is not linked to events in Shenstone Road, Edgbaston, on March 20, where a Muslim man was set alight while returning from a nearby mosque.

Sgt Chris Gallon, of Moseley and Kings Heath police, said: “This was an appalling attack on a member of the public who was heading home.

“We’ll be taking a full statement from the victim, who remains in hospital today, and we’ve already got officers in the area this morning recovering CCTV and carrying out house-to-house enquiries we are working hard to identify the attackers and the car that they were in.

“We’ll also have extra officers in the area for reassurance, and it’s important that anyone with concerns comes to speak to us.

“At this stage the motive for the attack is not clear, but there is nothing to suggest any connection at all to the recent attack on a man who was walking home from a mosque in Edgbaston.”

The attackers are described as two white men and one black man, all aged between 18 and 30. All were wearing tracksuits.

Anyone with information has been asked to get in touch via Live Chat at west-midlands.police.uk, quoting log 5182 of 29 March.