A British judge delivered a stern sentence to a far-left Black Lives Matter (BLM) leader who recently pled guilty to fraud charges. Xahra Saleem, a 23-year-old former director of Changing Your Mindset, misappropriated fundraising donations to support her extravagant lifestyle, as reported by the BBC on Tuesday.
Saleem, who wore a hijab during her appearance at Bristol Crown Court, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison, according to The Independent. She gained recognition as one of the organizers of a BLM protest in Bristol, England, held in June 2020 to advocate for the BLM movement after the death of George Floyd, as reported by the BBC.
Floyd’s death, attributed to a fentanyl overdose while in Minneapolis police custody in May 2020, prompted global protests following allegations from Democrats and their corporate media allies that blamed the arresting officers.
Saleem’s protest in the UK gained prominence as it resulted in the toppling of a statue of the slave trader Edward Colston, which was thrown into Bristol Harbor, as reported by the BBC.
Xahra Saleem helped organise the toppling of Edward Colston's statue in Bristol. She went on to defraud the public of £30,000 in donations for her BLM cause.
She spent the money on rent, ubers, hair & beauty appointments.
Bristol Crown Court jailed for two-and-a-half years. pic.twitter.com/5rJl6DPxSH
— David Atherton (@DaveAtherton20) October 31, 2023
Leading up to the protest, Saleem established a fundraising page, assuring donors that the funds would be utilized to purchase personal protective equipment (PPE) to adhere to COVID-19 regulations, according to the BBC.
However, Saleem admitted to transferring over £32,000 from the fundraising donations to her personal bank account. Between June 2020 and September 2021, she used these funds to sustain her lavish lifestyle, as reported by the BBC.
Judge Michael Longman noted that over 2,500 payments were made from the account, constituting a continuous outflow over an extended period. Saleem spent the misappropriated funds on various expenses, including living costs, a new iPhone, hair and beauty appointments, clothing, Amazon purchases, takeout meals, and taxi rides, as reported by the BBC.
The judge said that raising the money was “a worthwhile cause” but that “you [Saleem] then used (it) not for their benefit but for your own, funding a lifestyle for yourself that you could not otherwise have afforded.”
“In the absence of a business account to pay the money into, the decision was made to pay it into your own account as an interim measure,” the judge said.
“The others involved in the project trusted you to hold the funds securely until a better arrangement could be made.
“There should have been no reason why the money could not be transferred into that account but problems became apparent.
“The money was not transferred and you made excuses for that failure.”
Saleem asserted that she engaged in the fraudulent activity while not thinking clearly due to psychosis, as reported by the BBC. Although she initially entered a not guilty plea, Saleem later expressed remorse for her actions, according to the outlet.
