London Bridge: Attacker was convicted terrorist behind stock exchange plot
The man who killed two people in a stabbing spree at London Bridge yesterday was a convicted terrorist who was jailed in 2012 for plotting an attack on the London Stock Exchange.
The suspect, who was named by police as 28-year-old Usman Khan, was released on licence in December last year.
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A man and a woman were killed and three others were injured during the rampage, which has been declared a terrorist incident.
Khan was tackled to the ground by members of the public before being shot dead by officers, who feared he was about to detonate an explosive device.
Metropolitan Police commissioner Neil Basu said Khan was known to authorities. “Clearly, a key line of enquiry now is to establish how he came to carry out this attack,” he added.
The attacker was part of a group of al-Qaeda inspired terrorists who were convicted after plotting attacks on the London Stock Exchange and pubs in Stoke, as well as planning to set up a jihadist training camp in Pakistan.
The Times reported that Khan’s release from prison came after he agreed to wear and electronic tag and have his movements monitored.
In a statement the Parole Board said it had no involvement in Khan’s release, saying he “appears to have been released automatically on licence (as required by law)”.
Police believe the attack began inside Fishmongers’ Hall on the north end of the bridge, where Khan was a guest at a Cambridge University conference on prisoner rehabilitation called Learning Together.
Khan then proceeded onto London Bridge, where he was tackled by members of the public before being confronted and shot by police.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson last night chaired a meeting of the government’s emergency Cobra committee. He hailed the “extraordinary bravery” of members of the public who intervened.
“I have long argued that it is a mistake to allow serious and violent criminals to come out of prison early and it is very important that we get out of that habit and that we enforce the appropriate sentences for dangerous criminals, especially for terrorists,” he added.
Mayor Sadiq Khan said: “My heart goes out to [the victims], their loved ones and to everybody affected. London will never be cowed by terrorism. Terrorism will never win.”
Read more: Mayor Sadiq Khan hails ‘breathtaking heroism’ after members of public tackle terrorist
Police last night carried out searches at an address in Staffordshire, where the suspect had been living.
The Met said that there would be a heightened police presence in the capital and that cordons would remain in place for some time. It has urged people to avoid the area.