A man who threatened to kill a charity worker and burn down his workplace has been handed a suspended prison sentence, prompting renewed calls for a specific race hate crime offence in Northern Ireland.

William Brown, 28, from Newtownards, left a series of threatening voicemails for Takura Makoni, a policy officer at the African and Caribbean Support Organisation Northern Ireland. Brown used racist slurs and told Makoni he would be shot and beaten. He also threatened to destroy the charity's building in south Belfast.

Makoni recorded the calls, and Brown was convicted in April of making threats to kill, threatening to damage property and improper use of a public communications network. He received a nine-month prison sentence, suspended for three years. The judge enhanced the sentence on the grounds of racial hostility, but because Northern Ireland has no stand-alone hate crime offence, Brown was not convicted of a race hate crime.

Makoni argues that the absence of a dedicated law is a failure. He says victims need the confidence that reporting racist crimes will lead to action. The charity building Brown threatened also houses a group supporting young children and mothers, and Makoni said an attack could have caused widespread harm.

Victim Support has backed calls for reform. Michael Avila, a managing consultant, said that in most racially motivated cases, enhanced sentences are rare. PPS figures from 2024/25 show that of 79 convictions for racially aggravated offences, only 21 resulted in sentences that formally recognised the hate element.

The Northern Ireland Assembly is considering a Sentencing Bill that would introduce a statutory aggravator model. Under this system, courts would be required to treat hate elements more seriously, record the aggravation on the conviction and explain how it affects the sentence. The model was recommended by a report from retired judge Desmond Marrinan six years ago.

The Justice Minister introduced the bill earlier this year, and it is progressing through the Assembly. Avila said the change would help ensure consistent handling of hate motivation from the point of reporting through to sentencing.

Makoni, who said he faces racist language daily, is backing a restorative outcome but insists legislative change is critical amid ongoing racial tensions in Northern Ireland.