Man convicted in honour based attempted killing
In a Leicester Crown Court trial, Bharat Soma was found guilty of two counts of attempted murder and one count of unlawful wounding. Soma attacked 17-year-old Darshana Narotam, her 22-year-old boyfriend Prashant Govinde and an accompanying 15-year-old.
Narotam had her throat slashed by Soma in a violent attack whilst Govinde was stabbed in the neck, the 15-year-old present was also injured during the incident. It was labelled an honour motivated attack as Soma was betrothed to Narotam but the teenager had eloped with her boyfriend.
Narotam Deugi was found guilty of common assault and not guilty of false imprisonment and kidnap.
Four men who were on trial for kidnap were found not guilty and a 42-year-old woman who was charged with common assault and false imprisonment was also found not guilty.
Deugi was given a 12 month conditional discharge (he has already served 101 days on remand).
The victims of this vicious attack survived but were left with long term scars. Detective Inspector 1152 John Farndon of the Force serious crime team, said, “These were dreadful crimes, and could easily have caused the deaths of two young people who had harmed no-one.
“Crimes like these are very rare, and are sometimes called honour based violence. However, this has nothing to do with culture or religion, this is simple criminality.
“Leicestershire Police took this case extremely seriously and carried out a thorough investigation to put those responsible before the courts.”
In June the Government announced that forced marriages would be a criminal offence by law. Leicester Police are now closely working with charity Karma Nirvana which supports victims of honour based violence and forced marriages.
The Force has been training its officers to ensure they become specialists in this rare but very serious crime. Thirty two police officers, who already work in this field, took part in a three day course run by Karma Nirvana in September to give them the skills to risk assess and investigate this particular area of crime.
All officers and staff will also receive a half a day input to guarantee they are confident to spot signs of vulnerability and aid the victims affected.
Detective Inspector John Farndon added, “During our initial enquiries this case was quickly identified as being one of honour based violence and concerns regarding a possible forced marriage.
“This case demonstrates that we take crimes of this nature incredibly seriously and we hope it gives potential victims the confidence to report it to the police or other agencies.
“Anyone who fears they may be subjected to honour based violence or have concerns about someone else should contact us at the earliest opportunity. There are a range of criminal and civil powers we and partner agencies can put in place to keep you safe.”
For more information on Karma Nirvana charity please visit the following website, www.karmanirvana.org.uk
Anyone who would like help to discuss any of these issues can call their confidential helpline on 0800 5999 247.
