Benedict Cumberbatch and his family were reportedly left fearing for their lives after a knife-wielding chef launched an attack on the actor’s home.
The ’12 Years a Slave’ star, 46, his actress wife Sophie Hunter, 45, and their three sons Christopher, seven, Hal, six, and Finn, four, were said to be at their north London house when 35-year-old Jack Bissell, who previously worked as a chef at the Beaumont Hotel in Mayfair in the city, kicked his way through the front gate of the actor’s property, with a court hearing he allegedly ranted: “I know you’ve moved here, I hope it burns down.”
A source told the Daily Mail: “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.
“The fact that it was a targeted intrusion makes it a lot more scary.”
Bissell was reportedly arrested, fined and hit with a three-year restraining order from the Cumberbatch family.
He is also said to have taken one of the family’s plants and threw it against the garden wall, and at one point ripped the intercom off the building after spitting on it.
The former chef reportedly fled the scene before police arrived, but authorities were able to track him down due to the DNA evidence he left on the intercom.
During a trial this month, prosecutors said Bissell allegedly told a nearby shopkeeper he was going to break into Benedict’s home and burn it down.
Bissell pled guilty and was sentenced on May 10, but the Mail reported details surrounding the date the incident took place have not been disclosed.
The publication also said the facts of the case could not be reported until they “successfully challenged blanket reporting restrictions this week”.
It is unclear what the connection is between Bissell and Cumberbatch.
The actor and his wife married in February 2015 at a star-studded ceremony in England, and have kept their three boys out of the public eye.
Bissell admitted criminal damage at Wood Green Crown Court earlier this month, was fined £250 and given a three-year restraining order banning him from approaching the Cumberbatch family and the area in which they live.
The Mail said Bissell was photographed in 2015 being arrested during a central London protest against military intervention in Syria, and worked at the Beaumont restaurant from 2017 to 2018 and 2019 to 2020.
It added he has a previous conviction for theft, three warnings for offences against property, a public order offence and a drug offence.
