Officer Calls Evangelizing Muslims 'Hate Crime'

This is an old article, but certainly in the recent past, that relates to what just happened in MI to the evangelists.

By Peter J. Smith
6/4/2008
LifeSiteNews (www.lifesitenews.com)

BIRMINGHAM (LifeSiteNews) - UK police have refused to apologise for the actions of a Muslim community support officer, who threatened to arrest two Christian ministers for "hate crimes," because they were preaching Christianity in a Muslim area according to British media reports.

Christian ministers Arthur Cunningham, 48, and Joseph Abraham, 65, were handing out leaflets and speaking with four Muslim youths about Christianity in Birmingham on February 19, when Naeem Naguthney, 30, a Muslim police community support officer (PCSO) told them to cease-and-desist from preaching to Muslims.

"He said we were in a Muslim area and were not allowed to spread our Christian message," Cunningham told the Telegraph. "He said we were committing a hate crime by telling the youths to leave Islam and said that he was going to take us to the police station."

Both Christian ministers said Naguthney engaged them in a "threatening and intimidating" manner. Naguthney called in support from another PCSO named Ali, and a constable named Loi, who told them to leave the Islamic neighbourhood.

When he left, Naguthney made clear that the preachers could not count on the police for their safety.

"You have been warned. If you come back here and get beaten up, well you have been warned," he said.

http://www.catholic.org/international/international_story.php?id=28132