A court in London sentenced a 42-year-old Pole living in Great Britain to 10 years in prison on Monday. A drunk man tried to push a 22-year-old woman under a subway train.
The incident happened on August 29 last year at King’s Cross St. Pancras, when 22-year-old Maria Osifeso was traveling with friends to the Notting Hill Carnival, an annual festival of Caribbean culture, which was then taking place in London.
As it was established during the investigation, 42-year-old Artur H. approached her, tried to talk to her, and then, embracing her, tried to push himself and her under the oncoming subway.
The woman was saved by one of her friends, grabbing her before the train hit her. Sifeso told the court that she has since struggled with “overwhelming anxiety” when traveling alone on the subway.
H., who has two children, has lived in the UK for 15 years and worked in the construction industry, but in August 2021 his family returned to Poland and, according to the defence, he has since been depressed about his life, a condition which has been exacerbated by drinking alcohol . The man later told police interrogators that he drank four beers and a third of a liter of vodka that day and thought about taking his own life.