London’s Central Criminal Court has heard how police struggled to subdue Nicholas ‘Fat Nick’ Salvador, a Nigerian convert to Islam, after he went on a killing spree with a machete and beheaded 82-year-old Palmira Silva.
The court case swiftly became less about whether Salvador killed Silva, which he admits, but rather about his state of mind. This afternoon Salvador, who had to be tazered six times before he was arrested, was found not guilty of murder on grounds of insanity.
The court heard the remarkable scenes surrounding his apprehension, including the super-human feats of strength and endurance Salvador was able to summon to avoid his own arrest, reports The Evening Standard.
After decapitating Mrs. Silva and brandishing her severed head, trophy style, to a watching police helicopter Salvador was then cornered by police officers. Tasering him six times had little effect, and he was still able to resist arrest after being struck with the muzzle of a gun, hit over the head with a trunceon, being tear gassed, and repeatedly kicked and punched in the head. Eventually police struggled to place him in handcuffs, and had to carry him away in a rolled up carpet.
Even as he was cuffed, he managed to bite a police officer’s leg so hard he required treatment in hospital. The court heard that through the whole ordeal, he was screaming “Allah!” – even as he was carried away to police.
As well as being a recent covert to Islam, the court heard how Salvador had become obsessed with shape shifters and aliens, and would greet new people he met by asking them “are you human?”.
One witness told how during his killing spree, in which he also decapitated domesticated cats, he would look up to the sky and perform acts of what appeared to be worship. He also shouted phrases such as “red is the colour” and “I am the king”. Two psychiatrists have come to the conclusion that he is insane, and he has been detained indefinitely under the Mental Health Act.
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