Sherlock actor Benedict Cumberbatch’s home attacked by former chef
British actor Benedict Cumberbatch’s home in London was attacked by a former chef, it has recently been revealed. Wielding a fish knife, 35-year-old Jack Bissell kicked through the front iron gate in the garden, according to BBC.
“I know you’ve moved here, I hope it burns down,” he shouted, a court was told earlier this month. The Sherlock actor, his wife and their three children were home at the time of the attack.
The former chef pleaded guilty to criminal damage at Wood Green Crown Court on May 10 and was subsequently fined £250. He was also given a three-year restraining order stopping him from approaching the Cumberbatch family and their house in the future.
Bissell previously worked at a Mayfair hotel as a chef until 2020. The court was told he pulled a plant up and threw it at the garden wall. He then spat at the intercom and tore it loose using a fish knife. He left the scene but was arrested later after his DNA was discovered on the intercom, the news outlet reported.
“Naturally all of the family were absolutely terrified and thought this guy was going to get in and hurt them. Luckily it never went that far. Benedict and Sophie have had many sleepless nights since worrying that they may be targeted again,” a source close to the Doctor Strange actor told Daily Mail.
The prosecution also told the court that Bissell bought two packs of pita bread from a shop close by and told the shopkeeper that he was going to break in and burn the house down prior to the attack.
BBC reported that the details of the situation were kept hidden under “blanket restrictions” until the Daily Mail managed to successfully challenge them this week.
Previously, Bissell had been convicted of theft, received three warnings for offences against property, a public order offence and a drug offence. In 2015, he was seen being arrested during protests against military intervention in Syria in central London.
