Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Ryan Hooper & Sam Elliott-Gibbs

Dramatic final seconds of terrorist's life as he stabbed two in knife rampage

The dramatic final seconds of terrorist Sudesh Amman's life have been shown at the inquest into his death.

The footage included the moment he suddenly charged at police before being shot by officers in February last year.

It then shows the 20-year-old writhing wildly on the ground, where he died minutes later.

He went on a 62-second stabbing rampage after stealing a knife from a shop on Streatham High Road in south London and stabbing two members of the public at random. They both survived the attack.

His brutal spree was only brought to a halt when armed undercover police tailing him opened fire, shooting at him six times, hitting him twice at close range.

The inquest into the death of Sudesh Amman has begun at the Royal Courts of Justice (PA)

Members of the public could be seen scrambling for safety in shops as Amman sprinted along the busy street, before swiftly turning 180 degrees to face the officers with his knife raised at them.

Footage then showed Amman spending around 10 seconds lying on his back and flailing his arms and legs wildly before he stopped moving. He was declared dead 90 minutes later.

One witness who filmed the incident from a 201 bus travelling south, muttered: "This ain't real, this ain't real," as Amman was shot in front of him.

A police officer scrambled to the scene could be heard shouting: "He's got a vest - move away."

Council-operated CCTV directly above Boots, where Amman was fatally shot, showed the moment a bomb disposal expert arrived on scene around 40 minutes later, patting down Amman's body and carefully removing his hoax suicide belt.

Footage of his final moments was shown in court (PA)

Amman had only been released from Belmarsh prison 10 days earlier after serving part of his 40-month sentence for terror offences, despite pleas from police and MI5 to detain him for longer over concerns he remained a danger to the public.

Jurors at Amman's inquest at the Royal Courts of Justice on Tuesday saw video compiled from CCTV cameras and public transport, police body-worn footage, and evidence from members of the public showing the terrorist's journey from his probation hostel in Streatham to the spot where he would be shot dead 30 minutes later.

The inquest previously heard how Amman was deemed to be "one of the most dangerous individuals" that police and MI5 teams had investigated.

He was shot after stealing a knife from a shop on Streatham High Road and stabbing two members of the public at random (PA)

There was also intelligence that he maintained an extremist mindset, wanted to carry out a knife attack in the future, and pledged allegiance to the leader of so-called Islamic State.

Amman, raised in Coventry and Birmingham before moving to Harrow in north-west London, and who was of Sri Lankan descent, spent his short time after being released from custody living in a bail hostel in Streatham.

During which time undercover police teams monitoring him remarked on his "concerning" behaviour.

Amman had only been released from Belmarsh prison 10 days earlier (PA)

He was seen buying four small bottles of Irn Bru, some parcel tape and kitchen foil from a nearby Poundland on January 31.

It prompted police to call an emergency meeting at which it was decided to ramp up security rather than arrest him amid concerns he might use the materials to fashion a suicide belt.

Amman struck two days later and was found wearing a "crude" explosive device replica, made out of the items he bought at Poundland.

The inquest continues.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.