An Albanian national was believed to be in the UK illegally when he killed two people during a rampage in Coventry, a court has heard. Emiljano Kasaj, who was mentally ill, used his Mercedes to deliberately kill pedestrian Leo Moran and cyclist Joel Carriedo.
Kasaj, who was arrested on the morning of September 3, 2023, after crashing into a house in Coventry, pleaded guilty in March this year to one count of attempted murder and two counts of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, Warwick Crown Court heard.
His sentencing hearing today (June 16) was shown graphic CCTV footage of 44-year-old Mr Moran, who died of a neck injury, being struck at 7.56am on Gosford Street while another passer-by was knocked into a building and suffered a head wound.
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Prosecutor Peter Grieves-Smith also presented footage showing the Mercedes driving off at speed with a smashed windscreen and later travelling towards NHS worker Mr Carriedo. His bicycle was split in two by the impact, with the dad-of-two suffering chest injuries after being struck head-on and knocked over a wall around seven minutes later on Woodway Lane.
Mr Grieves-Smith said that 34-year-old Kasaj then struck a house around 300 metres away and was arrested almost an hour later in a nearby garden, Warwick Crown Court heard. He had used a false name and address to register the Mercedes.
Kasaj had been diagnosed as suffering from a paranoid psychosis linked to schizophrenia, with the 34-year-old telling experts he believed he had to kill because he was being blackmailed.
At Warwick Crown Court, they said of Kasaj: “Born in July 1990, he is an Albanian national with no previous convictions or cautions. He told the defence psychiatrist that, having left school, he worked at a car wash and then travelled to Athens to find work. He came to the UK about two years prior to the offences and settled in Coventry.”
Kasaj also said 'he came to England for a better life' and was 'in the UK illegally' but did not claim benefits, Warwick Crown Court heard. Mr Grieves-Smith said: “Police made inquiries about his status. Checks with Albanian authorities show he left Albania in January 2022.
“He was arrested for immigration offences in August 2022, as he had made no attempts to register, and he was detained in order to be removed. He said he had been trafficked into the country in the back of a lorry.”
Kasaj was held at Harmondsworth Detention Centre in London and attended a medical facility during that period, although the visit was not related to his mental health, Warwick Crown Court heard. On October 7, 2022, Kasaj was bailed to an address on Newfield Road in Coventry with 'a condition to sign on' at the Solihull Immigration Centre on December 5.
Mr Grieves-Smith continued: “He failed to appear for this and all other appointments. So at the time he committed these offences, he was subject to bail conditions imposed because of his immigration status. He was in breach of them but nothing was done about it by the Home Office.”
Evidence presented to Warwick Crown Court showed that Kasaj suffers from 'a major mental illness' which may have been aggravated by the use of cannabis or cocaine in the weeks before Leo and Joel were killed. Kasaj is due to be sentenced later today (June 16).
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