Two Romanian men have been jailed for stabbing a journalist in south London in 2024 as part of an attack that was assessed as having been carried out on behalf of or for the benefit of the Iranian regime.
An investigation led by Counter Terrorism Policing London saw officers identify the suspects despite them fleeing the UK immediately after the attack on an Iran International news presenter.
Working closely with the Romanian authorities, the Crown Prosecution Service and National Crime Agency, extradition warrants for the men were obtained. This led to their return to the UK and Nandito Badea, 21 (08.12.2004), and George Stana, 25 (14.12.2000) were found guilty of wounding and wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
The Judge agreed with the prosecution’s case and assessment that this was a state-sponsored attack, concluding that the evidence overwhelmingly supported the conclusion that the attack was carried out in the interests of and on behalf of the Iranian state.
The judge ruled that the ‘foreign power condition’ under section 31 of the National Security Act was met in the case of Stana due to the extensive planning and lengthy involvement in the plot indicating that he knew, or at very least ought to have known of the connection to the Iranian state. The condition was not deemed to have been met in the case of Badea, who was not aware of the connection to Iran as the motivation behind the attack.
Stana was sentenced to 12 years and Badea was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment respectively at the Old Bailey on Friday, 3 July. Stana’s sentence was aggravated due to the ‘foreign power condition’ being met in his case.
Following sentencing the Judge commended the Counter Terrorism Policing operation that led to bringing the two men to justice.
Chief Superintendent Kris Wright, head of Protective Security Operations for Counter Terrorism Policing London said: “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.
“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 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 happened on the afternoon of 29 March, 2024 in Queensmere Road, Wimbledon. Two men approached the victim as he left his home and went towards his car. One asked for money before the victim was held by one and then stabbed multiple times in the leg by the other man. Both then made off on foot.
The victim is a prominent news presenter on Iran International – a TV station that had been subject to threats from the Iranian regime and had been designated as a terrorist organisation by the regime. Due to the targeted nature of the attack, coupled with the ongoing threats emanating from Iran towards the media organisation, the investigation was immediately taken on by Counter Terrorism Policing London.
From witness accounts, detectives quickly identified that the suspects fled on foot, and then got into a blue Mazda car that was waiting nearby with a third accomplice driving. Officers traced the vehicle to New Malden. Another witness in New Malden told officers they’d seen the men discard items in a bin, and officers recovered a distinctive top that one of them was wearing during the attack along, with another green hoodie, both of which had DNA linking back to the suspects.
Officers then found that the trio had ordered a taxi from New Malden and this took them eventually to Heathrow airport, and the three left the UK on a flight to Geneva.
Through further enquiries, officers were able to identify the three suspects as; Badea, who was one of the men who directly carried out the attack; Stana who was waiting nearby in the car; and a third man – David Andrei – who is alleged to have been with Badea during the attack.
Detectives then went about building a compelling case, overlaying their mobile phone data, which placed them in the vicinity of Queensmere Road, both at the time of the attack, but also on a number of other occasions in the preceding two months, where some of them had been carrying out hostile reconnaissance as part of their preparation.
Detectives located CCTV that showed they travelled from a hotel in West Brompton and drove to Wimbledon in the blue Mazda, which they had bought from somebody through Facebook.
Officers also identified an incident a year earlier in March 2023, where Stana and another man were stopped near to the same address in Queensmere Road. A neighbour had called police over concerns about two men acting suspiciously in a communal garden. Although the incident was not identified as being targeted towards the same victim at the time, further enquiries established this had likely been the first example of hostile reconnaissance being carried out by Stana. Stana left the UK a day after his arrest in 2023, but he returned the following year, along with Badea and Andrei – the trio travelling into the UK from Romania in January and February 2024, before carrying out the attack in late March 2024.
Having carried out a detailed investigation which involved piecing various strands of forensic, digital, CCTV and financial evidence together, the CPS authorised charges against the three suspects in Autumn 2024. By this time, officers had identified that the suspects were still in Romania and after working with the CPS and NCA to obtain relevant extradition warrants, the three were arrested by Romanian Police in December 2024. Badea and Stana were extradited to the UK later that month. The third man – Andrei – remains in Romania as he is still subject to domestic criminal proceedings in that country.
Officers from Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP) continue to work closely with various Persian-language media organisations as well as a number of other individuals and organisations based in the UK to provide appropriate safety and security advice and support in relation to threats projected into the UK from Iran.
CTP also continues to work closely with intelligence partners and others to counter these types of threat – including through protective security measures and disruptive action.
If anyone has concerns over their own safety or the safety of somebody else, they should contact their local police force.
As always, we continue to ask the public to remain vigilant and report anything that doesn’t look or feel right to police by calling 0800 789 321 or call 999 if it is an emergency.