The incident happened in Croyden and Thornton Heath and lasted around 10 minutes.
Heidi Stonecliffe (prosecuting the case) said:
Akbari 'settled on him because Mr Speight was English'.Within 10 minutes or so Akbari confronted two other men with the same intention in Croyden, first at the Kebabish restaurant and then the Plough On The Pond Pub.Luckily Nicholas managed to kick his assailant off and escape without harm.
Akbari allegedly confronted John Hoy who was sitting at a table with three friends after finishing a pool tournament.
Again it is alleged that Akbari aggressively asked Mr Hoy "where he was from" before lunging at him with a large red handled knife. The three friends fought back and again, Akbari fled from the scene.
Akbari then moved on to the pub where he allegedly confronted Barry Watkins again asking him about his nationality. Mr Watkins, forced back into the pub by Akbari, confirmed he was ENGLISH, as did his friends who witnessed the event. Akbari then allegedly started lunging at Mr Watkins and his friends with a knife.
Heidi Stonecliffe (prosecuting the case) said:
Akbari is expected to say he was too drunk to form any intention to kill, but his actions were deliberate and considered.She added:
He knew exactly what he was doing, and he took care not to be caught.Jurors at the Old Bailey were shown CCTV footage of the alleged confrontation.
Heidi Stonecliffe read out extracts from the 999 calls made by Akbari's cousin who told the operator:
He said he wants to kill the English people. I can see his eyes; he's serious. He will do it. He's trying to run, and he will kill someone. Please come quickly.Akbari, of Thornton Heath, south London, denies attempted murder and wounding with intent against Mr Speight and threatening Mr Hoy with an offensive weapon.
The trial continues.
