The devastated best friend of London terror attack victim Jack Merritt has spoken of her heartbreak after learning of his death.
Jack, 25, had been at a prisoner rehabilitation event led by the University of Cambridge’s Institute of Criminology, next to London Bridge, when Usman Khan launch his sick attack on Friday.
Jack and Saskia Jones were both killed by the 28-year-old. Three other people were injured.
Tributes have poured in for the pair - who were both Cambridge University graduates - including from friend Hollie who wrote of her grief on Twitter .
In it, she says the days following the attack were “pure haze” with the shock of the tragic events making the loss of Jack incomprehensible. She wrote: “Nothing has made sense and nothing has mattered.
"I never thought I would live in a world where seeing your beautiful face would give me such a dark pain, a pain like I’ve never felt before.”
Jack, a course coordinator for Learning Together, a programme run by the University of Cambridge’s Institute of Criminology, was hosting an event at Fishmonger’s Hall when the incident unfolded.
Khan had taken part in Learning Together while at HMP Whitemoor in Cambridgeshire and was one of many students who attended the event. Khan was already known to authorities after being convicted for a terror event in 2012.
In het tweet, Hollie added that it was a tragedy that Jack was killed by someone he was trying to help.
She added: “You championed the underdog, you did all you could to get voices heard. It scares me to think that your voice is now lost, your reasonable, sensible, passionate voice could get lost in this mess.
“Why would the world take such a wonderful person from us, why would that be allowed to happen. A man, fighting for a brilliant cause that led to his death, why would that happen.”
Hollie's tweet has wracked up more than 64,000 likes and shared more than 8,000 times. Social media users gave thanks for her heartfelt message.
Owen Jones said: “This is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever read. What an incredibly inspiring young man, full of humanity, and an example to all of us. He’ll never be forgotten because of words like this.”
Another said it was a tragedy the world had lost another good person. Paul Fairhurst wrote: “Through the most awful of events and with your friend’s beautiful words, everyone sees a little of the light and love you brought into the world. Right now, when we desperately need more like you, your loss is tragic.”
The Metropolitan Police believe Khan started his attack while at the Learning Together event before he left the building and proceeded onto London Bridge, where he was shot by armed officers.
Khan appeared as a case study in a report by Learning Together, and was said to have given a speech at a fundraising dinner when he was released from prison.
Through the programme, Khan was given a secure laptop to allow him to continue the writing and studying he started while in prison.
In the case study, Khan told of his gratitude for the support he received via the programme. He said: "I cannot send enough thanks to the entire Learning Together team and all those who continue to support this wonderful community."
Khan, from Stoke-on-Trent, was given an indeterminate sentence with a minimum term of eight years behind bars after being convicted of terrorist offences in 2012, Sky News reports.
In a statement, Jack's family described him as a "talented boy" who "died doing what he loved".
They said: "Jack lived his principles; he believed in redemption and rehabilitation, not revenge, and he always took the side of the underdog.
"Jack was an intelligent, thoughtful and empathetic person.
"We know Jack would not want this terrible, isolated incident to be used as a pretext by the government for introducing even more draconian sentences on prisoners, or for detaining people in prison for longer than necessary.”
