Brazen jihadist who was free to parade his extremism on TV
London Bridge terror ringleader prayed in front of Isil flag on Channel 4 but police concluded he was not a threat
THE ringleader of the London Bridge terror attack was so open about his extremist views that he appeared in a flyon-the-wall documentary entitled The
Jihadis Next Door, it emerged yesterday. Khuram Butt, 27, a British national who was born in Pakistan, was filmed praying in front of an Isil flag in London’s Regent’s Park as part of a controversial Channel 4 programme that was broadcast in January last year.
By the time the documentary went out, the father of two had already been under investigation by the police and MI5 for six months.
But despite receiving calls from concerned members of the public about Butt’s increasingly radical views, police concluded that he was not a threat and the investigation was scaled back.
The revelation will add to pressure on the authorities over whether enough is being done to tackle extremism, after it emerged that Butt is the third terrorist in recent months to carry out an attack despite being known to security services.
However, Britain’s most senior counter-terror officer, Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley, last night defended the investigation and said he had seen nothing so far to suggest a “poor decision had been made”.
Mr Rowley said there had been no intelligence to suggest Butt was planning a terrorist act and no evidence that he had committed any terrorist offences.
He said that as a result Butt – who wore an Arsenal football shirt when he carried out his deadly attack – had been “prioritised in the lower echelons of our investigative work”.
His admission came as it emerged that Butt had links to the radical preacher Anjem Choudary, former leader of the banned Al-muhajiroun group, and was with him the day after the murder of Fusilier Lee Rigby in Woolwich, south London in 2013.
The Ramadhan Foundation, a Muslim anti-extremist charity, revealed that its chief executive, Mohammed Shafiq, was called a traitor by Butt after he denounced the killing of Fusilier Rigby. Hannah Stuart, author of Islamist Terrorism, a definitive analysis of UK attacks and offences, said: “Al-muhajiroun is obviously very well known to both the police and to MI5. It is connected to a quarter of terrorism offences.”
Ms Stuart, who is co-head of the security and extremism unit at the Policy Exchange think tank, added: “The London Bridge attacker’s connection to al-muhajiroun’s leadership raises very serious questions about the security services and the police.”
It came as:
♦details emerged of one of his accomplices;
♦the first British victim of the atrocity was identified as James Mcmullan. His family confirmed that his bank card had been found on one of the bodies;
♦donald Trump accused London Mayor Sadiq Khan of making “pathetic excuses” in his response to the London terror attacks;
♦met Commissioner, Cressida Dick said Britain had been hit by an “unprecedented” wave of terror attacks and there would have to be a review of resources.
Unlike Butt, his accomplices were not known to the security services and are both thought to be foreign nationals.
The second terrorist was named as Rachid Redouane, 30, who police said had claimed to be both Moroccan and Libyan. He was also known to use the name Rachid Elkhdar, and was understood to be in possession of an Irish identity card when he was shot dead by police. Redouane, who was married to a British woman and had a daughter with her, is thought to have lived in Dublin previously. It was not clear when or how he arrived in the UK.
Police said while they believed they knew who the third terrorist was they were still working with international partners to formally identify him.
At least a dozen Molotov cocktails were found in the van used by the attackers, according to reports last night. Officers are said to be treating the bottles filled with clear liquid as petrol bombs.
All 12 people arrested in east London on Sunday in relation to the attack have now been released without charge.
A vigil was held at London Bridge last night for the victims of the attack.
Seven people were killed in Saturday’s onslaught and 48 injured. Of those, 36 are still in hospital; 18 remain in a critical condition.