‘HE’S A BLOODY PSYCHO’
Neighbours say loudmouth father of four was heavy-drinking brawler who had split up from his partner
POLICE are stepping up armed patrols around mosques in Scotland after the terror attack in London.
Other places of worship will also see an increased police presence, it is understood.
Assistant Chief Constable Nelson Telfer said: ‘There is no specific threat to Scotland, however Police Scotland is increasing armed patrols in response to the attack in London. We continue to engage with all communities, providing reassurance and appropriate support.’
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she was ‘appalled, horrified and heartbroken’ at news of the ‘senseless and horrific attack’. She added: ‘Whether extremists and terrorists, who are a tiny minority in our society, are attacking Muslims or attacking in the name of Muslims, all of us must be absolutely resolute that our wonderful, diverse, multi-cultural society will not be divided, because that’s what the terrorists seek to do.’
The Muslim Council of Scotland said it ‘condemns in the strongest possible terms the callous terrorist attack’.
Church of Scotland Moderator the Rt Rev Dr Derek Browning said: ‘All acts of terrorism are to be condemned.’
Meanwhile, Miss Sturgeon yesterday chaired a Scottish Government resilience meeting involving senior ministers and police chiefs. She said: ‘While there is no intelligence of any specific threat to Scotland, Police Scotland remain vigilant and visible across communities to provide reassurance.’
TO his neighbours, Darren Osborne appeared a ‘normal bloke’ who could be a loudmouth but would also help them out with little household jobs.
He used to host raucous parties with his large family in his back garden, at which he would often burst into song.
The practically-minded odd-job man was always tinkering with a car in the road outside his home in a quiet cul-de-sac on the outskirts of Cardiff.
On Sunday morning he displayed community spirit by changing a tap in a neighbour’s house – but hours later the father of four allegedly drove a rented van into worshippers 160 miles away near Finsbury Park mosque in North London.
His shocked Muslim neighbour Saleem Naema, 50, a taxi driver, said yesterday: ‘If I ever needed anything he would come. I just can’t believe that he did that.’
In the months before the alleged terrorist attack, Osborne, 47, was on a downward spiral and his relationship with the mother of his children was on the rocks, locals said. He also allegedly insulted the 12-year-old son of his Muslim neighbours, calling him an ‘in-bred’ as he played on his bicycle.
Last night, his mother Christine Osborne, 72, insisted her son was not a terrorist, adding: ‘It is him, he did it – but there are mental health issues.’
Former friends branded Osborne a ‘bloody psycho’ who had been famous for his temper and would get into fights.
And it was claimed that the heavy drinker once beat someone up using a belt buckle.
On Saturday night, Osborne was thrown out of the Hollybush pub in Pentwyn, less than a mile from his home, after ranting about Islam. One drinker said: ‘He got chucked out as he was so drunk. He was cursing Muslims and saying he would do some damage.’
Another added: ‘He’s a loud and aggres- sive person. He’s always shouting the odds if anyone disagrees with him.’
His neighbour Khadijh Sherazi said Osborne had previously abused her son Nadeem, 12, something overheard by her daughter Nadia, ten.
Nadeem said: ‘I was on my bike and he just came up to me and said “in-bred”. It was just a normal voice. He just said it.’
Nadia added: ‘I said to my nan: “Did you hear that?”’ Mrs Sherazi said: ‘We didn’t think nothing of it. He seemed a normal bloke, a normal family, normal kids, happy go lucky. I would see him out walking with his two spaniels. He would also shout quite a lot but the kids seemed happy.’
Asked about the Finsbury Park incident, she told The Guardian: ‘It’s shocking... this guy didn’t show any signs of being racist.’
Osborne lived in a four-bedroom house in Cardiff – which has one of Britain’s longestestablished Muslims communities – with his long-term partner Sarah Andrews, 42, a chef at the Black Griffin pub in nearby Lisvane. Friends said their relationship was struggling, punctuated by fierce rows in the street. He shouted at his children.
Osborne’s arrest also sent shockwaves through his home town of Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. Police were seen yesterday at this mother’s home, a small £150,000 terraced house, Presley Towers, that bears an image of Elvis.
Mrs Osborne said of her son: ‘He is disturbed, and has been on medication. He’s unemployed at the moment. He’s got problems, but he’s also got a wife and four kids, and we can’t talk to his partner Sarah, she’s somewhere safe.’
She insisted he had no problems with Muslims and said he had no links with far-Right groups, adding that he was not a racist.
‘I’m not going to defend him but it’s my son and it’s a terrible, terrible shock,’ she added. ‘At this moment in time I can’t cope with it, I can’t.’
With her grandson Ellis, 26, who is mixed-race, next to her, she added: ‘Darren would stand up and die for Ellis.’ Osborne’s sister Nicola, 50, said: ‘He’s not interested in terrorism. I am very sorry for what’s happened.’
Neighbours described Mrs Osborne as ‘long-suffering’, with one adding: ‘Darren’s not had a bad life. He’s had quite a privileged life. He’s had more options than a lot of people.’
A former barmaid at Westonsuper-Mare’s Market House pub said Osborne was a well-known heavy drinker and troublemaker.
The woman, 40, who did not want to be named, said in the 1990s when she was 18, he grabbed her by the throat and pinned her to the wall as she worked.
‘As soon as we saw the pictures today we all recognised Darren – everyone knew him years ago because he was so unhinged,’ she said. ‘Obviously it’s shocking what he’s done – but then again it’s not surprising he’s done something like this because he was always violent and causing trouble.
‘He would be troublesome and provocative, he would goad people into wanting to fight and stuff like that. He was chaotic. Sometimes he would come in the pub and sit down and have a drink and be fine, amenable. The next minute he’d be starting a fight.’
Old school friends went online to describe how they recognised him ‘instantly’ from blurry footage of his arrest. They said he was ‘forced to leave the area’ around a decade ago after one run-in too many and moved to Wales.
One woman in Weston-superMare said: ‘The words I would use to describe Darren would be a “bloody psycho”. He is vile. He would just drink too much and flip
‘I’m not going to defend him’
the switch I guess. I only witnessed one of his fights. It must have been 15 odd years ago.
‘Someone said something to him – a drunk tourist guy [in a pub] and he just lost it. There was blood everywhere. He used his own belt end. He didn’t get arrested. He ran off. I think the police are scared of him too.’
In Cardiff, his neighbour Rebecca Carpenter, 26, a pharmacist, said: ‘He always seemed an aggressive and strange person. He drove around in an old car that was always damaged. He never caused us any real problems, but we could often hear him shouting.
‘None of us have ever really spoken to him but we recognised him straight away when we saw him on the telly this morning.’
Another neighbour said: ‘He split up with his partner six months ago but he’s been coming back ever since to look after the kids.
‘He seemed to have lots of vans and cars. I think he must have been some sort of mechanic. Sadly he is a bit of a troublemaker. He is always arguing with neighbours in the street, shouting.’
His partner was described as ‘a really nice woman’ by regulars at her pub, with one saying: ‘Everyone said she was too good for him. But no one dreamed he would do this.’