Police Release More Details of Parsons Green Bomb Investigation
After teenager Ahmed Hassan is found guilty of attempted murder
Met Police have released a new photo of Ahmed Hassan, the 18 year-old Iraqi asylum seeker found guilty of planting a bomb on a District Line train on September 15, and released new details of its investigation.
Temporary Deputy Assistant Commissioner Dean Haydon, said: "Hassan was extremely devious and cunning in the way he went about carrying out this attack. He built a home-made bomb packed full of shrapnel that was designed to kill, maim and injure as many people as he could. It was only through good fortune that it didn't fully detonate and had it done so, I have little doubt that we would have been dealing with many fatalities.
"The response of all the emergency services to this incident was tremendous - from the first responders at the scene, through to the detectives and officers involved in the investigation, his arrest. The case against him was so compelling that the jury were left in no doubt of his intent to kill, despite his claims to the contrary.
"The speed at which the Counter Terrorism Command investigation team worked was outstanding and had it not been for the fantastic support given by colleagues British Transport Police, Transport for London, Kent, Surrey and Port of Dover Police, then this result may not have been possible.
"I also hope that today's outcome will help those who were injured and on the tube that day to start to put this terrible ordeal behind them."
At 08:19hrs, on Friday 15 September 2017 an improvised explosive device (IED) partially detonated on an eastbound District Line Tube at Parsons Green Station. As local officers and emergency services responded to the incident at the scene, an investigation was launched by the Met's Counter Terrorism Command (CTC).
Detectives from the CTC made fast-time CCTV enquiries from the tube and corresponding stations to identify who boarded the train with the IED.
Within a few hours, they identified that the suspect boarded the tube at Wimbledon Station and further CCTV gathered from the station meant that officers were able to obtain a clear image of the suspect's face, which was then circulated to all police forces across the UK.
It was this image that allowed a police officer at the Port of Dover to spot and arrest Hassan after he arrived there at around 7am the day after the attack - less than 24 hours after the device had exploded.
Once he was in custody, officers pieced together Hassan's actions and movements, both in the weeks prior to the attack, in ordering and collecting the various components required to make the IED and also on the day of the attack, charting his journey as he left his home through to leaving the bomb on the tube and his subsequent journey to Dover.
Through their enquiries, officers found that Hassan went to great lengths to try and avoid detection and evade capture. He changed his outfit several times on-route to Dover, discarded his mobile phone and memory card and was only using cash. Despite all this, officers were still able to piece together the evidence that showed how Hassan firstly put together the various components for the IED, and then carried out the attack.
Expert analysis of the device showed that it had been constructed with the intention to fully detonate, but for some reason - possibly due to it being disturbed as he carried it on his journey that morning - it only partially detonated.
23 people were injured as a direct result of the explosion, suffering serious burn injuries, and a further 28 people were injured in the resulting stampede as passengers exited the tube and station in panic.
Hassan was arrested at the Port of Dover on Saturday 16 September and was charged six days later with the above offence.
Chief Superintendent John Conaghan, from British Transport Police, said: "Hassan's attack on a busy rush hour tube train last year put passengers through a frightening ordeal. This could have been a devastating attack and it was by sheer luck that more people were not seriously injured. Hassan has shown himself to be a very dangerous individual and his conviction will prevent him from posing any further threat to the public.
"British Transport Police officers responded quickly to help victims of the attack and we worked closely with Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Command in the following hours and days to help identify the attacker. Thanks to excellent work by the UK Counter Terrorism Network, Hassan was quickly identified and arrested.
"Protecting the public from the threat of terrorism remains our number one priority and I'd urge anyone who has suspicions or concerns to report them to us in confidence, either by text on 61016 or by calling 0800 789 321."
Hassan, of Sunbury, Surrey will be sentenced this week, with sentencing being considered by the judge The Old Bailey judge, Mr Justice Haddon-Cavein line with section 30 of the Terrorism Act 2008.
March 16, 2018
