Man imprisoned for four years after burgling a mosque and running over a police officer

A man has been sentenced to four years in prison after stealing from a mosque and then backing his car into a police officer in Slough, hospitalising him.

Anthony Chieke, 56, of Mount Street, Westminster, committed his burglary in Reading and was tracked down by police in Slough. It was there he was arrested while trying to escape.

Overnight on the weekend of October 21-22 last year, Chieke entered the Abu Bakr Mosque in Oxford Road, Reading, smashed donation boxes and stole around £1,000 in cash.

He also stole keys from the mosque to access the CCTV room. He sprayed the cameras with white spray paint and damaged cables which were linked to the CCTV system. It was here that Chieke’s DNA was found.

Then on November 18, 2024, police officers including a dog handler were alerted via licence plate recognition to Chieke’s vehicle in Slough. They tracked him down.

But when they got to him, Chieke failed to pull over for them. Instead, he tried to escape - but turned into a dead end road, where he was then blocked in by two police vehicles.

Chieke, still attempting to escape, reversed into a police car with his driver door open. He ended up injuring the dog handler, who was getting out of his own car at the time.

The officer required hospital treatment and has since been discharged.

Chieke was arrested on Tuesday 19 November and charged the following day.

He was found guilty in court of two counts of burglary and one count each of criminal damage, dangerous driving, and driving while disqualified.

Chieke refused to attend court and was found guilty by unanimous jury in his absence.

He was sentenced to four years in prison last Wednesday (October 8).

Investigating officer Detective Constable Daniel Hardwick said: “This was a burglary of a mosque that affected a whole community.

“Some days after the incident, the worshippers and attendees were incredibly anxious with some not feeling safe enough to return for weeks.

“The damage caused to the mosque and CCTV system was into the many thousands, and I’m pleased Mr Chieke has received a custodial sentence.

“He refused to engage throughout the entire judicial process. This includes refusing to engage during his police interview or refusing to attend court either in person or via live link from prison.

“I hope the attendees of the mosque can now move on and feel safe in their place of worship.”