Man pleads guilty following meat cleaver attack in Long Ditton

A man who attacked two other men with a meat cleaver at a hotel in Long Ditton last July has pleaded guilty after appearing in court this week.

Sher Wali, 49, (DOB 5/1/1975), of Portsmouth Road, Long Ditton, pleaded guilty to two counts of Section 18 grievous bodily harm with intent when he appeared at Guildford Crown Court on Monday (12 February). He was remanded in custody and will be sentenced on 19 April.

The attack took place near the reception area of the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Portsmouth Road, Long Ditton, around 2pm on Sunday, 9 July 2023. The hotel was being used as an Afghan Citizen Resettlement Centre at the time.

Four men were in a small sitting area next to the reception area when Wali came up to them holding a black plastic bag which he said contained a mobile phone. He said he had come to ask one of the men to look at the phone before reaching into the bag and grabbing a meat cleaver which he used to attack two of the men.

He was found by officers in his room shortly afterwards and arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.

During his interview, Wali claimed he and his family had been subject to harassment and torment from the victims and other guests. He said he hadn’t intended to kill the two victims and had just wanted to scare them.

Further enquiries revealed that he had bought the meat cleaver two or three days before the attack, which Wali denied had been pre-planned.

Detective Inspector Jon Brushneen, who investigated the incident, said: “This was a terrifying incident which took place in the middle of the day in a busy area and witnessed by many people. Wali has clearly had an issue with the two victims but nothing which warranted his violent behaviour that day. Both men were left seriously injured and I can only hope that his guilty plea will give them some closure following the violent chain of events which unfolded that day.”