Solicitor who injected supermarket food with own blood denies guilt by reason of insanity

Leoaai Elghareeb, 37, alleged to have walked down west London road carrying a bucket of syringes

Mr Elghareeb caused nearly half a million pounds worth of damage (PA)

A solicitor who injected supermarket food with his own blood causing almost half a million pounds worth of loss has denied guilt by reason of insanity.

Leoaai Elghareeb, 37, is said to have walked down Fulham Palace Road in West London carrying a black bucket of syringes, some of which had needles attached, throwing them at people outside and inside a Waitrose, Tesco and Sainsbury’s.

He is also accused of throwing a syringe of blood at the chest of an NHS doctor in the street during the alleged rampage on the evening of 25 August last year.

CCTV footage shown to jurors captured him deliberately injecting syringes into apples, packets of chicken tikka fillets, and ready meals in the three supermarkets.

In Sainsbury’s he also threw eggs and swore at staff and customers, Isleworth Crown Court heard.

In the same store, he is accused of pushing a security guard in the chest.

Mr Elghareed was detained and arrested outside a pub shortly after he picked up a plant pot outside the restaurant and threw it through the open door, jurors were told.

A total of 21 syringes were recovered.

The stores were forced to take the precaution of throwing away and destroying all their produce, and restocking, before reopening days later.

This led to costs of £207,000 for Waitrose, £143,000 for Sainsbury’s and £117,000 for Tesco.

Mr Elghareeb denied today three counts of contaminating food with the intent to cause the public alarm, anxiety or injury and two counts of assault by beating.

Opening the case, prosecutor Philip Stott said: "In the early evening of a late summer’s day last year, Mr Elghareeb walked down the Fulham Palace Road in West London carrying a bucket. It was filled with syringes, some of which had hypodermic needles attached.

"A number of those syringes were filled with blood - his own.

"Mr Elghareeb then entered, in turn, three supermarkets on the Fulham Palace Road - in order they were: Waitrose, Sainsbury’s and Tesco - and proceeded to stick those syringes in food products inside those branches of those supermarkets.

"Along the way he also threw some of the syringes at people inside and outside the store including hitting a passerby on the street.

"As he was confronted, because of his actions, by a succession of store personnel inside the supermarkets he assaulted one of them by pushing him, in addition to throwing verbal insults at those around him."

Dr Meghana Kulkarni was walking along Crabtree Lane around 7.30pm, the prosecutor said, and was uncomfortable as Mr Elghareeb "seemed aggressive".

Mr Stott said: "As the defendant passed her, he threw a syringe at her, hitting her in the chest. Fortunately, the syringe had no needle attached to it, and it just bounced off her without causing any injuries.

"It appeared to Dr Kulkarni that this was not the first syringe that the defendant had thrown because she saw and spoke to other people in Crabtree Lane who were picking them up off the ground.

"The defendant continued up to Fulham Palace Road.

"He then went into a branch of Little Waitrose, located at 201-2017 Fulham Palace Road. He began to throw syringes and also to stick them into the packets of food there.

"Once staff realised what had happened, they told everyone to drop their shopping and leave, and then closed the store.

"A number of syringes filled with blood were recovered from the branch, some of which were found on the floor, and some of were sticking into packets of food, for example apples and a packet of chicken tikka fillets.

"After he left Waitrose, the defendant continued north along Fulham Palace Road and straight into a branch of Sainsbury’s Local.

"He carried out the same action, throwing syringes and sticking them into produce inside the store.

"At this point, as you can see on the CCTV, a member of staff confronted the defendant about his actions.

"As you saw there, the defendant pushed one of the security guards on his chest. That was Mr Bilal Ansari.

"Mr Ansari will tell you that the defendant was shouting things like ‘you are all vile people and Sainsbury’s is vile’. He was also swearing at the staff and at customers and throwing eggs, before leaving.

"Again, staff closed the store and found syringes on the floor and into items like packets of meat and ready meals."

The prosecutor said Elghareeb carried out the same actions in the Tesco Express where a store manager closed as soon as they noticed what was happening.

Mr Stott continued: "Mr Elghareeb walked past a tapas bar called Avanti. He picked up a plant pot which was on a table outside the restaurant and threw it through the open restaurant door narrowly missing a waiter before walking off again.

"By this time, the police had been called and Mr Elghareeb was detained and arrested shortly afterwards further up the road outside a public house called The Distillers.

"As you would expect Waitrose, Sainsbury’s and Tesco thoroughly searched their stores and then had them deep-cleaned before they were able to reopen.

"A total of 21 syringes were recovered from inside those stores and outside on the street.

"The stores, also inevitably, took the precaution of throwing away and destroying all their produce, before reopening some days later.

"All that cost, in respect of Waitrose, approximately £207,000, in respect of Sainsbury’s, £143,000, and in respect of Tesco’s approximately £117,000. So nearly half a million pounds worth of loss to those three businesses."

Jurors were told while it is agreed Mr Elghareeb carried out the actions on 25 August 2021, and he is fit to stand trial now, the defence will say he was "suffering from a disease of the mind so as not to know what he was doing was wrong.".

Mr Elghareeb, wearing a grey prison-issue tracksuit and glasses, only spoke during arraignment to confirm his name and to enter his five pleas of not guilty to contaminating food and assault.

He repeatedly shook his leg during the hearing but did not show any other emotion.

The trial continues.

SWNS