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Finsbury Park attack suspect was probably 'self-radicalised'

Wellwishers write on a banner outside Finsbury Park mosque after the attack on Monday.
Wellwishers write on a banner outside Finsbury Park mosque after the attack on Monday. Photograph: Smiejkowska/Rex/Shutterstock

The suspect in the Finsbury Park terrorist attack is believed to have been self-radicalised into his extremist hatred of Muslims, it is understood.

The investigation by Scotland Yard’s counter-terrorism command continues after a van was driven into Muslims near a mosque early on Monday.

Darren Osborne, 47, is being questioned and detectives are trying to establish the motives for the attack.

Police are taking advice from lawyers from the Crown Prosecution Service’s counter-terrorism division about the scope of the investigation and what charges should be considered.

The attacker is believed to have acted alone rather than as part of a group when he struck near a mosque in Finsbury Park, north London.

Detectives are not seeking anyone else, at this stage, over the attack. Some people at the scene claimed there were others in the van. No evidence has been found to support this.

Evidence indicates the attack was premeditated, and not a spontaneous decision.

Investigators are looking at each part of what was needed for the attack, as they decide on lines of inquiry and what charges may be brought.

The suspect’s mental health is also a part of the investigation.

Osborne was arrested for attempted murder and later arrested under terrorism legislation, on suspicion of the commission, preparation and instigation of terrorism, and for murder.

The counter-terrorism command on Tuesday obtained a warrant for Osborne’s continued detention until just before 1am on Saturday.

Eleven people were injured when a van ploughed into worshippers as they left the mosque in north London in the early hours of Monday. Two victims were treated at the scene and nine were taken to hospital. The Met said four patients remained in hospital on Wednesday evening, two of whom were receiving critical care, correcting an earlier statement.

One man was pronounced dead at the scene at 1am, although inquiries are continuing to establish whether there is any link between his death and the attack.

The Met commissioner, Cressida Dick, said a special postmortem examination had been carried out to determine how Makram Ali, 51, died, amid reports he had been taken ill before the attack.

Speaking to the London Assembly’s police and crime committee, Dick said: “We continue our investigation to establish exactly how he came to his death. We have carried out a special post-mortem, and we are working very closely with his family and with all the people who were affected and their families.”

Police community support officers outside a house believed to be Darren Osborne’s home.
Police community support officers outside a house believed to be Darren Osborne’s home. Photograph: Matthew Horwood/Getty Images

A man living near Osborne told the Press Association he reported him to police for sleeping in a van 24 hours before the rampage.

Edward Gardiner, 28, called officers when he saw a man smelling of alcohol asleep in the vehicle with the door open. He believes it was Osborne.

The vehicle Gardiner saw was rented from Pontyclun Van Hire, near Cardiff, the firm that supplied the one used in the attack.

Gardiner, a self-employed builder and plumber from Pentwyn, east Cardiff, called police at 12.27am on Sunday. “I could smell alcohol on him and he was grunting and groaning. I poked him but he didn’t respond so I called 101,” he said.

South Wales police said no offences had been committed when they went to the street in the Llanedeyrn and Pentwyn area of Cardiff.

A spokesman said: “A male was asleep inside the vehicle, which showed no signs of having been driven recently. The officers’ assessment was that no offences were disclosed.”

Osborne, a father of four, has been described by relatives as having been “troubled for a long time”. In a statement, his family said: “We are massively shocked. It’s unbelievable. It still hasn’t really sunk in.

“We are devastated for the families. Our hearts go out to the people who have been injured.”