British police are facing heavy scrutiny after they threatened to arrest a Christian preacher after a group of Muslims heard him preach and threatened to stab him and punch his wife. 

The incident occurred in Bristol when Pastor Dia Moodley was preaching in the city center. Moodley was talking about the differences between Islam and Christianity and was holding a Quran as he did so.

In response, he says a Muslim bystander threatened to stab him, while another tried to punch his wife. Moodley said he was then pinned to the ground by the Muslims who tried to steal his Quran on the grounds that it was their book rather than his.

According to the legal advocacy group ADF International, which is supporting Moodley, when the police appeared, they did nothing to reprimand the Muslims, and the man who made the stabbing threats allegedly continued to threaten him in the presence of the police.

ADF said that on two occasions, police officers told Moodley that he could be arrested for “public order offences.”

Eventually, the incident was defused when a senior inspector arrived at the scene and told Moodley that he would not be arrested.

Moodley has filed a complaint against Avon and Somerset Police over the incident. 

He said, “I preach in public because I believe all people, including Muslims, need to know that Jesus Christ is ‘the way, and the truth, and the life.’ I always do so respectfully, out of love for my neighbor.

“Unfortunately, on this occasion, a group of Muslim men objected to my preaching and reacted with violence. It’s shocking that the police initially said I had breached the peace. This shows yet again that two-tier policing, which targets the expression of Christians, is a reality in modern-day Britain." 

Lorcán Price, a barrister with ADF, said the incident was evidence of “de facto blasphemy laws” being used in Britain to "target Christian expression, through public order and other legislation."

“All in favor of free speech must support repealing censorial legislation and introducing stronger protections for freedom of expression in the U.K.," he said.

"Otherwise, innocent people like Pastor Moodley will be forced out of the public square or face unjust criminalization for their peaceful expression."

Avon and Somerset Police released a statement saying, "Officers attended a public disturbance in Broadmead, Bristol, on March 22 in which a preacher reported he had been threatened."

They continued, "A crowd of people gathered and was dispersed by officers, and the preacher was advised to stop and leave the area as a precaution.

"An investigation has since been carried out, and a man in his 20s attended a voluntary police interview in July, after which it was decided no further action would be taken. This was communicated to the preacher on July 22, as well as their rights to submit a victim’s right to review (VRR) if not satisfied with the decision.

"The following day, they submitted a VRR, which was assessed by a Chief Inspector, who determined on July 27 the case should be passed to the Crown Prosecution Service to consider a charging decision. The process is ongoing and therefore this remains a live police investigation."

This article was originally published at Christian Today