Man who pushed former Eurotunnel chief in front of Tube train found guilty of attempted murder
'I jumped straight on to the tracks to save his life,' rescuer tells Old Bailey
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The former Eurotunnel boss Sir Robert Malpas sobbed in court as the man who pushed him on to the tracks of the London Underground was found guilty of attempted murder.
Sir Robert, 91, said he was sent “flying” on to the rails at Marble Arch station, after Paul Crossley, 46, shoved him from behind with both hands.
CCTV footage of the attack when it was played in court for the first time on Friday and drew gasps from the public gallery at the Old Bailey.
Sir Robert was rescued by passer-by Riyad El Hussani, a hotel worker who leapt from the platform to save just a minute before the arrival of the next train.
The retired Eurotunnel chief was left with a fractured pelvis and a gash to the head requiring 12 stitches after the attack on 27 April.
Crossley was found guilty of two counts of attempted murder.
A second Tube passenger, Tobias French, managed to keep his balance when he was pushed by Crossley as a train pulled in to Tottenham Court Road station.
Crossley told jurors his victims were chosen at random but claimed he had not intended to kill them.
In a statement read to jurors during the trial, Sir Robert said he had been to a pensioners’ lunch prior to the attack.
“As I was walking along the platform I felt a two-handed push to my back,” he recalled.
“I felt myself flying over the tracks and landing on the rails. I may have been concussed but only for a very short time. I banged my head on the rails.”
Mr El Hussani, who had just finished work at the Dorchester Hotel in Mayfair, said he heard “screams and shouting” before running 20 metres to where Sir Robert lay with his clothes and umbrella covered in blood.
“I then jumped straight on to the tracks to save his life,” he said in a statement.
The rescuer suffered burns to his right hand after touching the electrified rail. The judge said: “Mr El Hussani showed extraordinary bravery with a complete disregard for his own safety in saving Sir Robert and he is obviously to be commended for that.”
Crossley, who was living in a homeless hostel in east London, was chased and detained by members of the public after he pushed Sir Robert.
He told them: “It’s not right, I know it’s wrong,” before explaining to police officers: “I didn’t get much sleep last night.”
Crossley, who was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia when he was 17, admitted he was the man wearing a cap and hood caught on CCTV shoving both men.
He told jurors he had taken crack cocaine the previous day and began feeling paranoid as he made his way to the West End to get coffee.
Judge Nicholas Hilliard QC adjourned the sentencing, awaiting further reports.
Additional reporting by Press Association