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Islington Tribune - by ROISIN GADELRAB
Published: 14 September 2007

Neighbour’s complaint about noise sparked attack by political refugee

A POLITICAL refugee came to blows with his journalist neighbour in a row over noise, a court has heard.
Kabeya Kabangu, 43, was found guilty at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court last week of assaulting neighbour Charles Campbell outside his home in Portpool Lane, Clerkenwell, in April, after Mr Campbell banged on his wall to complain about noise.
Prosecuting, Stephen Rowlands said: “Mr Campbell says he banged on the wall but says he then heard banging and swearing on the other side and this was followed by hammering on his front door. Mr Campbell, clad only in boxer shorts, went to answer the door and said he found himself confronted by Mr Kabangu and alleges that Mr Kabangu assaulted him by grabbing him by the throat and ramming him into the wall.”
Mr Campbell said he had returned from a night out with friends when he heard the noise. He added: “I put some boxer shorts on because I had just come out of the shower and opened the door because he was very violently banging on it.”
He said the assault left him with cuts to his body, chest, elbow and forearm.
Father-of-three Kabangu, who moved to England in 1993 from the Democratic Republic of Congo, told the court: “I had gone to a political meeting based on the events in my country and we started talking about how people had been massacred in Congo.”
He was given a DVD showing students being killed, which he watched at home. He said: “After some time I heard somebody was knocking on my wall.
“Both my wife and I have started having heart problems and I was quite distressed by this. So I went outside to the door of Mr Campbell.
“I don’t know him very well because he’s a new neighbour. I asked why he was knocking on my wall – if there’s noise why couldn’t he knock on my door and tell me.”
Khalid Khan, defending, suggested Mr Campbell may have got his injuries while playing football earlier that day.
Magistrates found Kabangu guilty but called for probation reports before sentencing.
The chairwoman of the bench said Kabangu would not be jailed.

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