Man jailed after recording brother's murder trial on his phone

A man has been jailed after he was caught recording his brother's murder trial from the public gallery on his mobile phone. Rijaan Mohamed of Fairy Lane has been sentenced to seven months in jail for contempt of court.

It follows a two-week trial at Manchester Crown Square for the murder of Badri Issa. Two men from Cheetham Hill have been found guilty of the murder and manslaughter of Mr Issa, 22, who was stabbed to death on Moss Lane East on October 25, 2023.

People were seen 'throwing punches' and 'throwing bottles' in the street outside outside the court after proceedings finished on Thursday evening (May 9). The Manchester Evening News understands that the violent brawl was linked to Mr Issa's murder trial.

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Police have now revealed that during the trial, Mr Mohamed, the brother of one of the defendants, was found to have been recording proceedings. On April 26, Mr Mohamed dropped his phone from the balcony public gallery into the court room.

The phone was recovered when the proceedings were halted for a short adjournment and was found to have been recording for over an hour and a half.

Detective Chief Inspector Andy Naismith, who is GMP's senior investigating officer for the murder of Badri Issa, said: “This has been an extremely difficult trial for the family of Badri Issa, made more challenging through the conduct of certain individuals. Badri Issa lost his life in the cruellest of circumstances, trying to de-escalate a situation, and my thoughts will always remain with his loved ones who have gone through so much.

“The actions of Raajan Mohammed are unacceptable, and I welcome this sentence today. I