Simon Levy denies attacking Belmarsh prison officer with pen

Simon Levy, who is serving a whole-life sentence for the murders of two women in Tottenham, appeared via videolink at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday to deny charges of assaulting a prison officer. The 41-year-old is accused of stabbing Paul Dunne with a pen and attempting to strangle him during an incident at HMP Belmarsh on 18 February.

Prosecutor David Burns, as reported by the Evening Standard, told the court that Levy attacked Dunne at the end of a meeting. Burns said Levy stabbed the officer multiple times in the arm and neck with a pen before grabbing him around the throat and tightening his grip. Dunne fell to the floor during the alleged assault.

Case sent to Crown Court

Deputy Chief Magistrate Tan Ikram sent the case to Inner London Crown Court for trial. A hearing has been scheduled for 14 September. Levy’s lawyer, Jason Lartey, told the court his client denies assaulting the officer or grabbing him around the throat.

Levy was sentenced to a whole-life term last week for the murders of Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo, 53, and Sheryl Wilkins, 39. The killings occurred in Tottenham last year, following a series of sexual assaults on the London Underground and the rape of a woman in a car park. At the time of the alleged attack on Dunne, Levy was in custody awaiting trial for those offences.

What happens next

The case will proceed to trial at Inner London Crown Court on 14 September. No further hearings have been publicly confirmed. The court has not yet set a date for Levy’s trial on the new charges.