Software engineer caught with machetes and zombie knife in Harehills is jailed

A member of the public alerted police after seeing Edet Oahimin-Akhimien holding a machete and saying 'no one can mess with me', Leeds Crown Court heard.

When police arrived at the scene they saw Oahimin-Akhimien with a bag that had a machete handle sticking out of it.

Oahimin-Akhimien, 41, was handcuffed and when police searched his bag they found two machetes and a zombie knife.

Harry Crowson, prosecuting, said when police searched Oahimin-Akhimien's home they found sheaths for all three weapons in his living room.

Oahimin-Akhimien, of Brookfield Avenue, Leeds, admitted three charges of possessing a knife in a public place on August 29.

He has one previous conviction for wounding dating back to 2001 and cautions for common assault and sending a malicious communication.

A probation officer told the court Oahimin-Akhimien came to the UK from Romania in 2008 and has been in Leeds since 2002.

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The probation officer said: "He has drunk alcohol all his life. He drinks up to five bottles of vodka a week. He also drinks strong lager."

The court heard Oahimin-Akhimien has a degree and a masters degree and is a software engineer.

The probation officer said Oahimin-Akhimien's drinking got worse after one of close friends was killed in a car crash.

He said: "His family has been telling him for many years that he is an alcoholic and he has now accepted that."

Charlotte Noddings, mitigating, said: "The defendant tells me he suffers from alcohol problems.

"When his friend tragically died it led to a huge escalation. He was effectively trying to drink away his grief.

"He is extremely sorry for what he did. This offending is something he wants to put behind him. He has no recollection of being outside his house."

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Miss Noddings said Oahimin-Akhimien wanted to show the weapons to his friends, adding: "He tells me that before this offence he was a collector of knives. He finds them interesting.

"Following this offending he will never collect knives agai. That is the end of this hobby."

Jailing Oahimin-Akhimien for 12 months, Judge Geoffrey Marson QC told him: "They are horrendous weapons."

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