Teen guilty of planting subway bomb
LONDON — A teenage Iraqi asylum-seeker who told police he had been trained by the Islamic State group was convicted of attempted murder on Friday for planting a homemade bomb on a London subway train.
Ahmed Hassan, 18, showed no emotion as he was found guilty at London’s Central Criminal Court.
The bomb partially exploded on a London Underground train at Parsons Green station on Sept. 15, sending a fireball down the packed carriage that left 23 people with burn injuries. Police say 28 more were hurt in a panicked rush to leave the train.
Prosecutors said there would have been many more injuries and probably deaths if the device had operated properly. Prosecutor Alison Morgan told jurors it was just “a matter of luck” that the bomb didn’t fully detonate.
Hassan admitted building the bomb but denied attempted murder, saying he had not meant for it to explode. On the witness stand he said he only wanted to cause a fire because he was “bored and stressed” and had developed a fantasy about becoming a fugitive.
Prosecutors said Hassan built the device from everyday ingredients, following instructions he found online. He ordered hydrogen peroxide and other chemicals to make the explosive TATP, and bought nuts, bolts and knives for shrapnel at supermarkets.