Come on son
Rescuers’ plea to PC stabbed in ‘scene from a horror film’ as he lay dying at Westminster
RESCUERS shouted ‘ come on son’ as they desperately tried to save the life of the policeman fatally stabbed by the Westminster terrorist, an inquest heard.
Officers raced to the side of PC Keith Palmer, 48, as he lay on the ground just yards from the gates of Parliament he was guarding.
A mobile phone captured the frantic scene amid attempts to stem the bleeding from the unarmed officer’s horrendous wounds. An audio recording played at the Old Bailey yesterday relayed shouts of ‘ police officer stabbed in the head, police officer stabbed in the head’. The stricken officer was described as having a ‘weak pulse’ and losing blood.
A man could be heard urging PC Palmer to fight for his life, shouting: ‘Keith, come on, son’ but he was pronounced dead 35 minutes after the attack.
The shocking recording was played on the fifth day of the inquest into the murder of PC Palmer by knifeman Khalid Masood, 52, in March last year.
Moments earlier, the lone wolf terrorist had claimed the lives of four others he mowed down with a rented vehicle on nearby Westminster Bridge.
Another witness told how Masood snarled ‘f*** off’ at a bystander seconds before he murdered PC Palmer.
The terrifying exchange was revealed by Carl Knight, who was sitting on the top deck of a passing bus as the terror attack unfolded. Mr Knight said: ‘A pedestrian male walked across and said, “What are you doing?” The African male replied, “f*** off, you don’t want to mess with me”.’
Describing the moment Masood bore down on PC Palmer with a knife in each hand, one witness said it was like something ‘you see in a horror film’.
James West said he saw the knifeman ‘stabbing downwards ... in a Hollywood stabbing motion’.
The inquest heard PC Palmer stumbled over a low wall before the fatal blows were struck.
Mr West said: ‘ All of the officers ran towards Westminster Hall, apart from one who ran round to the left and then appeared to trip or stumble on the kerb – the ground is cobbled – at which point the assailant started to attack the person on the ground.
‘The officer on the ground was curling up to make himself small. [The attacker] was partially holding the officer in place and the other hand was repeatedly stabbing the officer, like you see in a horror film.’
PC James Ross, who was on duty nearby, said: ‘I saw the suspect had a knife in each hand with blades around a foot long and he was stabbing PC Palmer in and around the head area.
‘He was hitting with such force that the blade was bending.’
Mr Ross said he was trying to get his CS spray out and when he looked back he could see only Masood. He went on: ‘I have run to the gate, then stopped, turned around, then [I was] running at the suspect with some kind of plan in my head to try and tackle him before he got anyone else.’ As PC Ross distracted Masood, PC Palmer got back to his feet but collapsed again on the cobbles. Seconds later, Masood was shot dead by a plain-clothed officer.
The inquiry heard that Masood may have been targeting Prime Minister. The terrorist was heading towards the entrance to Parliament looking for another victim when he was shot dead. His attack came after Theresa May had finished addressing the House of Commons.
Masood fell a short distance from the Members’ Entrance to Parliament, which leads to the Chamber via several corridors.
The Prime Minister’s parliamentary office is also a short distance away, alongside those of other government ministers.
Gareth Patterson QC, who represents the families of some of the victims, asked parliamentary assistant Antonia Kerridge, who witnessed Masood’s attack: ‘If he had made it to the members’ entrance, does it allow him access to the Chamber?’
Miss Kerridge said there was a network of corridors, but they would eventually lead there. The inquest continues on Monday.