Ilford hate preacher Anjem Choudary ‘energised’ Barking London Bridge terrorist, inquest hears

From the Ilford Recorder and the Telegraph.

According to a friend, Khuram Butt, 27, of Barking (below) was like a “lion out of a cage” in the company of the al-Muhajiroun leader in the months leading up to the terrorist incident on June 3, 2017.

His decent into radicalisation even caused a family member to report his extremist views to an anti-terrorism hotline two years before he killed eight people and injured 48 more in a van and knife attack with Rachid Redouane, 30, and Youssef Zaghba, 22.The London Bridge attacker was believed to have had links to al-Muhajiroun and even appeared on a Channel 4 documentary called The Jihadis Next Door in 2016.

A friend of the terrorist, Hamza Raza, told investigators Butt first came into contact with Choudary at around that time (2015). “He met Choudary when he had gone round to Butt’s home once during the Ramadan period,” Jonathan Hough QC, counsel to the inquiry, said.

It wasn’t the first time Butt had manages to slip through the net and in 2016 he was employed by London Underground as a customer service assistant on a salary of £23,000.

The inquest was told background checks did not flag up Butt’s involvement with the Channel 4 documentary.Jonathan Hough QC, counsel for the coroner, asked if the role gave Butt access to underground stations in a “security capacity”.Acting Det Ch Insp Wayne Jolley, who investigated the attacker’s background, replied: “Yes it did.”

Acting Detective Chief Inspector Wayne Jolley, who investigated the attacker’s background, said the role gave him access to secure areas of stations including Westminster.He was also occasionally tasked with inspecting suspicious packages.

Butt was eventually sacked from the role after failing probation in October 2016.

While on sick leave from the transport job, claiming his feet were causing him problems, he met Redouane while training at the Ummah Fitness Centre in Ilford.He also befriended Zaghba through Sunday afternoon swimming sessions and they both volunteered at Ad-Deen Primary School, where the partner of the gym’s owner worked.

Headteacher Sophie Rahman allowed Butt to lead Quran lessons to primary school children alone for two hours, up to three times a week. He taught the pupils about jihad and said “the worst creatures are the Kuffar (non-believers)”.

Ms Rahman employed him without checking his references and was later banned from the classroom for life by the Teaching Regulation Agency. The school was shut down and Rahman was banned for life from the classroom for employing Butt, who had already shown signs of extremism in The Jihadi Next Door.

The inquests continue.