Three men guilty of plotting Heathrow and Westfield terror attacks

The three Daesh-inspired men were convicted today following a trial at the Old Bailey. A fourth man was convicted for having a prohibited weapon. The court heard one of the group, Umar Haque, wanted to drive a vehicle into pedestrians at various busy locations including Parliament Square, foreign embassies and banks in the City of London.
 
Haque, 25, intended to use a knife and gun in the attack, which was inspired by the Westminster Bridge attack in March 2017. He received support from two other men who were also convicted for their roles in the plans.
 
Abuthaher Mamun, 19, agreed to raise funds for Haque’s plan by investing more than £900 in online trading companies. Their intention was to use the funds to buy a vehicle and pay for motor insurance. 
 
Muhammad Abid, 27, knew of Haque’s plans but chose not to inform the authorities. During one conversation, which was monitored by the police, they discussed the London Bridge attack and glorified the actions of the driver. They also spoke approvingly of his methods and their shared aspiration to conduct a similar mass murder attack in the UK. Both men discussed targets in London and Abid said he would assist Haque with the planning.
 
The fourth man Nadeem Patel, 26, was found to have an illegal Walther P99 handgun at his home in Forest Gate. It was capable of firing cartridges containing tear gas or pepper spray but not solid bullets. He was given a 16-month sentence on 2 March. Patel was not prosecuted for any terror related offences.

Haque worked as a teacher at a mosque in Barking and sought to radicalise boys aged between 12 and 14 during their weekly lessons. He told them he was in contact with Daesh and showed them extremely violent videos.
 
He said the boys should join Daesh because one day the terror group would rule Europe. Haque role-played mock attacks where the boys would pretend to be the police and attackers
 
Staff at the mosque were not aware of his activities. Sue Hemming from the CPS said: “The prosecution was able to show that by early 2017, Umar Haque had determined to carry out a terror attack in this country. He also used his position of trust to try and convert vulnerable children to his extremist cause and groom them to be involved in future activity. Six of them bravely gave evidence in this case.
 
“Haque’s ultimate aim was to kill as many innocent people as possible, regardless of their religion, in order to advance the extremist ideology of Daesh. Thankfully he failed and along with the others he must now face the consequences of his actions.”
 
Haque, Mamum and Abid will be sentenced at a later date.