Two Romanian men have been jailed for stabbing a journalist in south London in an attack assessed as having been carried out on behalf of or for the benefit of the Iranian regime, Counter Terrorism Policing stated.
Nandito Badea, 21, was sentenced to eight years and George Stana, 25, to 12 years at the Old Bailey on 3 July, after both were found guilty of wounding and wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. Stana’s sentence was aggravated because the judge found the foreign power condition under section 31 of the National Security Act was met in his case, on the basis that extensive planning and lengthy involvement in the plot indicated he knew, or ought to have known, of the connection to the Iranian state. The condition was not found to be met in Badea’s case, the court concluding he was unaware of the Iranian motivation behind the attack.
According to Counter Terrorism Policing, the judge agreed with the prosecution’s assessment that this was a state-sponsored attack, concluding that the evidence overwhelmingly supported the finding that it was carried out in the interests of and on behalf of the Iranian state.
Chief Superintendent Kris Wright, head of Protective Security Operations for Counter Terrorism Policing London, was quoted in the press release as saying: “It was our case that this targeted and violent attack on a journalist was carried out on behalf of the Iranian regime, and the Judge agreed with that assessment of the evidence. Because of this, both men are facing a considerable time behind bars for their actions, which has been extended because this attack was linked to a foreign state.” He added: “Our recent casework shows an increasing use of so-called ‘proxies’ by hostile foreign states to conduct illegal activity and attacks in the UK. But this case, and others, show that we will not tolerate this and that we will work with our partners in the UK and internationally to identify those involved and bring them to justice. Our message to anyone being asked to carry out activity by foreign states, or even unknown entities online is to think again, because you will be caught and you will face justice.”
The attack took place on the afternoon of 29 March 2024 in Queensmere Road, Wimbledon. Two men approached the victim as he left his home for his car, with one asking for money before the victim was held by one man and stabbed multiple times in the leg by the other. Both fled on foot. The victim is a presenter with Iran International, a television station that had been subject to threats from the Iranian regime and designated a terrorist organisation by it, a factor that led Counter Terrorism Policing London to take on the investigation immediately.
Detectives established that the men fled to a waiting blue Mazda driven by a third accomplice, traced the vehicle to New Malden, and recovered discarded clothing from a bin carrying DNA linking back to the suspects. The trio took a taxi to Heathrow and left the UK on a flight to Geneva. Mobile phone data placed them near the scene both at the time of the attack and on occasions during the preceding two months, when police say they had conducted hostile reconnaissance. Officers also linked Stana to an incident in March 2023, when he and another man were stopped near the same address after a neighbour reported two men acting suspiciously in a communal garden.
Charges were authorised in autumn 2024, with the three arrested by Romanian police that December following extradition warrants obtained with the Crown Prosecution Service and National Crime Agency. Badea and Stana were extradited later the same month. A third man, David Andrei, alleged to have been present during the attack, remains in Romania subject to domestic criminal proceedings.
