First Man In Britain Evicted For Being Racist

A YOB who terrorised a family is the first person to be thrown out of his home for racial abuse.

John Ward, 61, was prosecuted under new anti-social behaviour laws after he attacked, threatened and abused Somali neighbour Amina Mohamed, 32, and her seven young children.

Once he left her nine-year-old daughter sobbing after he ripped off her religious headscarf and threw it down.

Jobless Ward - convicted of a racially aggravated assault two years ago - called the children "black dogs" who should go back to Somalia.

Council chiefs took him to court after a police report warned he was a "serious risk to the safety" of the family.

Under a section of the Anti-Social Behaviour Act introduced in June, Woolwich county court banned him from "threatening, assaulting or approaching" them and said he must leave his flat in Plumstead, South East London.

Greenwich council said: "This is the first time a council has enforced this legislation. We will not tolerate racism by any of our tenants."

The case comes during the Daily Mirror's Reclaim Our Streets campaign against anti-social behaviour.

In a police statement Mrs Mohamed said she feared for her children's safety from "this very aggressive man".

She added: "This aggression has occurred over four months, including chasing my children and swearing at them."

She said her daughter was pushed to the ground in a scuffle during the headscarf incident.

She told police: "Mr Ward started to rant in a drunken manner, 'I'm going to f*** you up'. I was very frightened."

The police report said the incident was one of many caused by Ward to her and other black families.

It also said he was released only six months earlier from a prison sentence for grievous bodily harm.

Ward has a 40 year history of jail terms and 64 convictions including assault, criminal damage, theft and fraud.

He is fighting eviction and insisted he is not racist: "I get on well with everyone of all colours on this estate.

"There is a good community spirit here and everything was fine until they came.

"There are seven children penned into a one bedroom flat so they are creating havoc for their neighbours.

"They barge into me and I pulled at the headscarf of one because she refused to apologise. The incident has been blown out of all proportion."