This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42910051
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Darren Osborne guilty of Finsbury Park mosque murder | Darren Osborne guilty of Finsbury Park mosque murder |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| A man who drove a van into a crowd of Muslims near a London mosque has been found guilty of murder. | A man who drove a van into a crowd of Muslims near a London mosque has been found guilty of murder. |
| Darren Osborne, 48, ploughed into people in Finsbury Park in June last year, killing Makram Ali, 51, and injuring nine others. | |
| Osborne, from Cardiff, was also found guilty of attempted murder and is due to be sentenced on Friday. | Osborne, from Cardiff, was also found guilty of attempted murder and is due to be sentenced on Friday. |
| Prosecutors said they were "clear throughout that this was a terrorist attack". | Prosecutors said they were "clear throughout that this was a terrorist attack". |
| The jury took an hour to return the verdict at Woolwich Crown Court after a nine day trial. | The jury took an hour to return the verdict at Woolwich Crown Court after a nine day trial. |
| Sue Hemming, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: "Darren Osborne planned and carried out this attack because of his hatred of Muslims. He must now face the consequences of his actions." | Sue Hemming, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: "Darren Osborne planned and carried out this attack because of his hatred of Muslims. He must now face the consequences of his actions." |
| Cdr Dean Haydon from the Metropolitan Police said: "Osborne's evil and cowardly actions meant a family has tragically lost a husband, father and grandfather." | |
| Some of those injured "could suffer from health issues for the rest of their lives", he added. | |
| Jurors heard the area outside the Muslim Welfare House had been busy with worshippers attending Ramadan prayers on 19 June. | Jurors heard the area outside the Muslim Welfare House had been busy with worshippers attending Ramadan prayers on 19 June. |
| Mr Ali had collapsed at the roadside in the minutes before the attack. | Mr Ali had collapsed at the roadside in the minutes before the attack. |
| Several of those who went to help him said he was alive and conscious in the moments before being struck by the van. | Several of those who went to help him said he was alive and conscious in the moments before being struck by the van. |
| Osborne drove the van into the crowd at about 00:15. Jurors were told the van only stopped when it hit some bollards. | Osborne drove the van into the crowd at about 00:15. Jurors were told the van only stopped when it hit some bollards. |
| He then got out of the van and ran towards the crowd. | He then got out of the van and ran towards the crowd. |
| Police later found a letter in the van written by Osborne, referring to Muslim people as "rapists" and "feral". | Police later found a letter in the van written by Osborne, referring to Muslim people as "rapists" and "feral". |
| He also wrote that Muslim men were "preying on our children". | |
| The trial heard Osborne became "obsessed" with Muslims in the weeks leading up to the attack, having watched the BBC drama Three Girls, about the Rochdale grooming scandal. | |
| Analysis | Analysis |
| By Dominic Casciani, BBC home affairs correspondent | By Dominic Casciani, BBC home affairs correspondent |
| In just a few weeks, Darren Osborne went from a troubled, angry and unpredictably violent alcoholic to a killer driven by ideology. | In just a few weeks, Darren Osborne went from a troubled, angry and unpredictably violent alcoholic to a killer driven by ideology. |
| The rapid radicalisation - the way he became fixated on the idea that Muslims in Britain were some kind of nation within a nation, is one of the most shocking parts of this awful crime. | The rapid radicalisation - the way he became fixated on the idea that Muslims in Britain were some kind of nation within a nation, is one of the most shocking parts of this awful crime. |
| The sources of that radicalisation, including his obsession with a television programme about the Rochdale abuse scandal, show how difficult it is to predict who will become a danger to society. | The sources of that radicalisation, including his obsession with a television programme about the Rochdale abuse scandal, show how difficult it is to predict who will become a danger to society. |
| But the fact that he smiled contentedly after he had run over and killed Makram Ali proved to the jury that his motive was ideological. | But the fact that he smiled contentedly after he had run over and killed Makram Ali proved to the jury that his motive was ideological. |
| Osborne is not the first terrorist to have radicalised so quickly. In 2014, a young man who was groomed by Islamists went through a similarly rapid change. | Osborne is not the first terrorist to have radicalised so quickly. In 2014, a young man who was groomed by Islamists went through a similarly rapid change. |
| The speed at which these men and others went from a change of mindset to planning an attack is one of the issues that most concerns the security services. | The speed at which these men and others went from a change of mindset to planning an attack is one of the issues that most concerns the security services. |
| Osborne told the court he had originally hired the van to kill Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn at a march he was due to attend. | Osborne told the court he had originally hired the van to kill Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn at a march he was due to attend. |
| He said it "would have been even better" if London Mayor Sadiq Khan had been present, adding: "It would have been like winning the lottery." | He said it "would have been even better" if London Mayor Sadiq Khan had been present, adding: "It would have been like winning the lottery." |
| A statement from his partner Sarah Andrews, read out in court, said he seemed "brainwashed" and "totally obsessed". | A statement from his partner Sarah Andrews, read out in court, said he seemed "brainwashed" and "totally obsessed". |
| Ms Andrews - who had been in a relationship with Mr Osborne for about 20 years and with whom she had four children - described him as a "loner and a functioning alcoholic" with an "unpredictable temperament". | Ms Andrews - who had been in a relationship with Mr Osborne for about 20 years and with whom she had four children - described him as a "loner and a functioning alcoholic" with an "unpredictable temperament". |
| Osborne started following Tommy Robinson, one of the founders of the English Defence League (EDL), and other far-right leaders on social media, in the fortnight before the attack. | |
| Mr Robinson sent him a group email saying: "There is a nation within a nation forming beneath the surface of the UK. It is a nation built on hatred, on violence and on Islam." | Mr Robinson sent him a group email saying: "There is a nation within a nation forming beneath the surface of the UK. It is a nation built on hatred, on violence and on Islam." |
| Cdr Haydon said the investigation had the "full weight" of the Met's Counter Terrorism Command behind it. | |
| He warned that online material had played a "significant role" in how Osborne was radicalised and "brainwashed". | |
| If Osborne's aim had been to "create divisions and hate between communities", then he had "failed", he said. | |
| "The response [of those involved], and the overwhelmingly positive reaction my officers and teams have witnessed since, highlights how far from reality Osborne's sick and twisted views really are," he added. | |
| 'Scars will stay' | |
| The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) welcomed the verdict, but added: "We cannot be complacent and regard this as a one-off terrorist incident." | |
| Harun Khan, secretary general of the MCB, said: "The scenes we witnessed last summer were the most violent manifestation of Islamophobia yet in our country. | Harun Khan, secretary general of the MCB, said: "The scenes we witnessed last summer were the most violent manifestation of Islamophobia yet in our country. |
| "The case tells us that we must all exercise caution when tempted to stigmatise any group of people, regardless of colour, creed or community." | "The case tells us that we must all exercise caution when tempted to stigmatise any group of people, regardless of colour, creed or community." |
| Khalid Oumar, a trustee of the mosque and founder of the Finsbury Park Attack victims' voice forum, praised the strength of the community, adding: "The scars will stay with them forever, but the community is determined to go about daily life without fear and to stand together against victimisation and violence." | Khalid Oumar, a trustee of the mosque and founder of the Finsbury Park Attack victims' voice forum, praised the strength of the community, adding: "The scars will stay with them forever, but the community is determined to go about daily life without fear and to stand together against victimisation and violence." |