UK drops National Security Act allegations in Shahzad Akbar, Adil Raja attack case

The Crown Prosecution Service has dropped allegations under the National Security Act 2023, including claims that attacks on former accountability adviser Mirza Shahzad Akbar and former military officer and YouTuber Adil Raja were linked to a foreign power, significantly narrowing the prosecution’s case.

During a hearing at the Old Bailey on Friday, prosecutors told the court they would no longer rely on provisions of the National Security Act or ask a jury to determine whether the alleged offences were carried out on behalf of, or for the benefit of, a foreign power. The decision removes any state-linked aggravating element from the prosecution’s case.

The prosecution nevertheless maintained that the defendants were allegedly “hired thugs” and that the attacks had been “orchestrated”, suggesting others may have been involved in planning the alleged conspiracy.

When the judge asked whether the National Security Act element had been abandoned because the defendants did not know they were acting for a foreign power, the prosecutor indicated that appeared to be the position.

The case relates to a series of coordinated incidents between late December 2025 and early January 2026.

Akbar was assaulted at his Cambridge home after a masked man allegedly asked for him by name before repeatedly punching him, leaving him with facial injuries including a broken nose. Around the same time, two men allegedly attempted to force entry into Raja’s home in Chesham, Buckinghamshire, while he was away.

A week later, an attempt was also made to set fire to Akbar’s property. Owing to the targeted nature of the incidents, the investigation has been led by Counter Terrorism Policing.

Under Section 31 of the National Security Act 2023, the foreign power condition applies where conduct is directed, funded, assisted or intended to benefit a foreign state.

The CPS’s decision suggests prosecutors will instead focus on the alleged assaults and related offences without seeking to prove any foreign state involvement.

Both Akbar and Raja have urged police to identify those who ordered the attacks, while investigators have said no evidence has yet established who was behind the alleged conspiracy. All defendants remain in custody pending trials scheduled to begin in 2027.