New Zealand officials confirm name of Auckland knife attacker

Associated Press via Sky News

The New Zealand government has named 32-year-old Ahamed Samsudeen as the extremist who was shot and killed by police after he left seven people injured in a knife attack inside an Auckland supermarket.

On Saturday, three of the victims remain in a critical condition and three more are in stable or moderate conditions. The seventh person is recovering at home. The youngest victim was a 29-year-old woman, while the oldest was a 77-year-old man.

Court documents named the man as 32-year-old Ahamed Aathil Mohamed Samsudeen, a Tamil Muslim who arrived in New Zealand 10 years ago on a student visa seeking refugee status. . .  claiming he and his father had experienced serious problems with Sri Lankan authorities due to their political background. He claimed they had been attacked, kidnapped and tortured and said the pair were forced to go into hiding.

He was accepted, and his refugee status was granted on December 20, 2013, after a tribunal found he had a well-founded fear of facing harm if he returned to Sri Lanka. But on May 31, 2018, the Refugee Status Branch served Samsudeen notice of its intention to cancel his refugee status – meaning he would be deported back to Sri Lanka – after a string of incidents in which he posted extreme videos and pictures online. He was formally warned by police in April and May 2016, and he apologised and closed down his social media account. 2018…Justice Edwin Wylie made a ruling under the Immigration Act 2009, prohibiting the publication of Samsudeen’s identity and status as a refugee due to his concerns about his safety if he was deported.

The attack has highlighted deficiencies in New Zealand’s anti-terror laws, which experts say are too focused on punishing actions and inadequate for dealing with plots before they are carried out. ..Police Commissioner Andrew Coster said the law officers were working under required a suspect to make the first move.

At his latest trial in 2021, Samsudeen claimed his internet searches and videos were not evidence he supported Isis. . . 

Justice Sally Fitzgerald sentenced him to 12 months’ supervision after finding he had an “operative interest” in a terrorist organisation, and a report writer concluded he “had the means and motivation to commit violence in the community”. 

The High Court judge also set a number of special conditions which included him living at a West Auckland mosque, and restrictions on him owning and using devices with internet access. He was directed to live at a West Auckland mosque, where the president “confirmed its willingness to help and support you on your release”. Investigate that mosque immediately; seach the premises and drill into their website. Mrs Arden says there are others under surveilance (just ‘not many’). Are they connected with Samsudeen? I bet they are. Lone wolves usually plot in packs.  Mosque was visted by police here.