Oxford man bites endangered plant after burgling college

An asylum seeker has been jailed for stealing from an Oxford University college and “biting” a rare plant.

Faida Elhabib stole nearly £3,000 of items from Magdalen College and damaged extremely rare plants at the Botanic Gardens, a court heard.

Oxford Crown Court heard the 31-year-old Moroccan stole jewelry, electronics, and food from The Professor’s House at the college.

Elhabib also broke into a greenhouse at the neighboring Botanic Gardens, damaging “extremely rare” and unique plants in June last year. 

The Oxford Botanic Garden & Arboretum is Britain’s oldest. The Walled Garden houses scientific and heritage collections, while the Lower Garden is more ornamental.

Puneet Grewal, prosecuting, told the court that the couple who lived in The Professor’s House flat were out of the country at the time of the burglary, when Elhabib stole items worth £2,854.

Elhabib broke into the greenhouse through a window and damaged two “extremely rare” plants, biting one of them, Ms. Grewal said.

The court was told the damaged plants were Anthorrhiza-echinella and an epiphytic orchid. The former is particularly rare and is on a global nature body’s endangered list. 

“He was living as an asylum seeker in Oxford at the time of the offense,” Ms. Grewal said.

“There must have been a degree of planning and knowing the occupants wouldn’t be there.”

The stolen jewelry was recovered from Elhabib’s hotel room.

Though the value of the damage caused to the rare plants was unknown, one of them was described as being “one of a kind”.

The court heard Elhabib, whose address was given as a street in Luton, had 11 previous convictions for 16 offenses.

Peter Du Feu, mitigating on Elhabib’s behalf, told the court his client’s memory about the plants was “unclear”.

“He was at the time accommodated in an asylum seeker hotel in Oxford,” he said. 

“He does remember these events, but in relation to the Botanic Gardens, he is not clear. He doesn’t know why he disturbed the plants and he doesn’t remember biting one.”

Mr. Du Feu added that Elhabib had an account of being pursued by the Moroccan secret service, and that he had an “implant” which helped the service “pursue him across Europe”.

He continued: “[Elhabib] says he does not have solicitors helping with his asylum application. He is trying to do that by himself.”

Recorder John Bate-Williams, after jailing Elhabib for 21 months, told him: “I take account of your mental disorder, which must have been influential on your behavior.”