Suicide bomber ‘ blended in too well’ at Arena

SUICIDE BOMBER Salman Abedi overcame security at Manchester Arena because he “blended in too well”, the venue’s boss told the public inquiry into the 2017 attack.

Abedi, 22, was in the area and the adjoining Victoria railway station from 8.30pm on the night of the bombing which killed 22 people as he walked around with a large rucksack on his back.

At one point he spent 10 minutes in a toilet cubicle after he had struggled to navigate the coin- operated entry turnstile.

He later hid from sight from CCTV cameras for nearly an hour in the raised mezzanine level of the City Room foyer before he descended the staircase and detonated his home- made device, packed with thousands of nuts and bolts, as members of the public left the Ariana Grande concert.

Yesterday, counsel to the inquiry Paul Greaney QC asked James Allen, Arena general manager: “Salman Abedi was 22 years of age, he was a dropout from university, he was entirely undistinguished in life and he even struggled to work out how to get into the toilets in the station.

“How was it that he managed to defeat the security arrangements at the Arena that night?”

Mr Allen replied: “Because I believe he blended in too well.”

The witness, who is employed by venue operator SMG, told the hearing at Manchester Magistrates’ Court it was his view that he and SMG had discharged their responsibility for the safety and security of the crowd of around 14,300 who attended the concert on May 22.

He agreed, though, it appeared to be the case the mezzanine level was not checked during the period that Abedi hid and a failure to do so during events was a “major failing on someone’s part”.

The hearing continues today when Mr Allen will continue to give evidence. The public inquiry is looking at the background circumstances before and during the bombing and is expected to last into next spring.