17 July 2025, 07:35
The man released rats near the Grand Mosque on Grimesthorpe Road, Sheffield.
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Google Maps
A man who deliberately released wild rats near a mosque has avoided jail time.
Edmund Fowler, 66, drove to the Grand Mosque in Sheffield four times to release caged rats by the place of worship.
Between May and June he filmed himself taking the vermin out his vehicle and encouraging the animals to enter the mosque.
He told Sheffield Magistrates’ Court it still “remains a mystery” why he did it.
Fowler, of Skelwith Drive, Sheffield, pleaded guilty to four counts of racially aggravated harassment at a previous hearing.
He was sentenced to 18 weeks in prison, suspended for 18 months, and banned from going near a mosque for 18 months.
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Leicester, Leicestershire, UK 30th May 2021. UK News. Brown rats forage for food in an inner city park in Leicester City Centre. Alex Hannam/Empics.
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Alamy
Fowler must also undertake 15 rehabilitation activity days and he is banned from entering certain areas of the city.
He was also ordered to pay £239 in costs.
He could be seen in CCTV footage driving his Audi to the mosque on Grimesthorpe Road.
Fowler then shouted racist insults at people entering the place of worship.
The court heard how he “deliberately targeted a local mosque” and caused “upset and shock”.
The mosque manager said, in a victim impact statement: “It is evident people using the mosque are Muslim.
“They are scared of further harassment and are now too scared to come to the mosque.”
Fowler’s defence solicitor said the man knew his crime was “appalling” but he did not know why he did it.
It was suggested, in court, that he may have had a mental breakdown due to his various caring responsibilities – including caring for his wife with breast cancer.
Suzanne Irish-Deverill, chair of the bench, told Fowler she was “disgusted” by the footage and that his crimes were “pre-planned on multiple occasions”.
She continued: “You also had the audacity to record it yourself. It has had significant impact and caused shock and distress.
“People are entitled to travel to a place of worship without being racially or religiously harassed – it is a hate crime.”