Neighbours have described the two men killed in the Manchester synagogue terror attack as pillars of their local community in heartfelt tributes after the victims were named by police.
Melvin Cravitz, 66, and Adrian Daulby, 53, died in an attack on Heaton Park Congregation Synagogue on Thursday, Greater Manchester Police have said. Both men were Crumpsall residents attending the synagogue on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar dedicated to atonement and repentance.
Three other victims remain in hospital with serious injuries.
Speaking at a vigil for the two victims on Middleton Road, close to the synagogue, Rabbi Daniel Walker who had been in the place of worship during the attack called Mr Daulby and Mr Cravitz two “special men” whose lives were “snatched from them as they tried to pray as Jews on Yom Kippur”.
The first victim of the attack, Mr Cravitz, has been pictured. A neighbour of Mr Cravitz told The Independent he was a man of the community.
“He was a very nice person. We knew about what had happened but this morning his picture came out that’s when we realised it was him,” they said, not wanting their name to be shared.
“He was so nice in the community. He’d always be on the road talking to us. My sister lives a few doors down and he’d knock on and tell her her washing was getting wet. He was a very friendly neighbour.”
Daulby’s neighbours described him as a “loving” and “helpful” member of the community.
“I've known him since I moved here in 2005,” Abdul Rahimi said. "He was like family. It is a real shock especially to my children, because he was friends with them. He was children-minded.
“He did a lot on the road, too much. He was always helpful. Always on Eid or Christmas he would bring a gift.” He said he had first learned of Daulby's death after seeing his name on the news this morning.
“We thought it could not be possible,” he said. “Actually, we were looking for him yesterday. We didn't know where he was. My wife called me and said Adrian is missing. Another neighbour called his phone so many times and it just rang through.
“He lived alone, his mum and dad had passed away. All the animals in the street, the cats, he loved them. He would bring a lot of books and gifts for my kids. I have not told my kids because they love him so much.”
“He always used to bring us Christmas gifts,” Mr Rahimi's 16-year-old daughter Mariam said. “We would play with water guns together in the summer. Even not during Christmas, if my sisters knocked on the door he would give them toys.”
“He was probably getting ready for Halloween,” Mr Rahimi added. “The children would love to go to his home.”
Mariam said Daulby’s house was “the first we would go to” every Halloween.
“We have all kinds of communities on the street,” neighbour Ferozan Abdul, 38, added. "Everyone is good. It is such a shock."
Friends of Cravitz, Elchonon and Hindi Cohen, told The Telegraph he was “a figure around here”, adding: “If you saw Melvin, you stopped and talked.”
Mr Cohen said: “He was a lovely person. Always with a joke, always making a smile. He had his humour.”
Ms Cohen added: “He would visit us often. Before every festival we would have him over for a meal.
“He was very beloved. He was a figure around here. If you saw Melvin you stopped and talked,” she added: “He didn’t always have it easy. He had health issues, but he was always with a joke and a smile.”
The couple said that Mr Cravitz had two heart operations and no children of his own, but was regarded as a beloved uncle figure by his wife Karen’s children from a previous marriage.
“He didn’t have immediate family of his own but the family he had he was desperate to connect with,” said Ms Cohen. “This is a tragedy for all of them.”
Neighbours described Daulby as “a gentle and innocent soul” who loved nature and looking after children.
A Muslim family who live next door to his home, where he lived alone a few hundred metres from the synagogue, said he was a cancer survivor who spent his time tending his garden and running a YouTube channel.
Hussain, who did not want to give his surname, told The Times: “He was very outdoors. His garden was his life. He was one of them who absolutely loved and adored kids as well. He didn’t have any of his own but the street’s kids were like his kids. He’d give them presents.”
Mr Daulby had only recently started going back to the synagogue after his own father died. Hussain said: “It was three, four years ago that he just started going again. I spoke to him on Tuesday and he was talking about how it was going to be a big celebration day but because he was not feeling too good, he was not going to fast. But he was debating if he was going to the synagogue or not.”
Waqas Hussain, 32, and Haleema Younas, 34, lived just a few doors down from Mr Cravitz. They said they found out he had died after seeing his picture on the news on Friday morning, and described him as a “model neighbour” and a “lovely person”.
“I saw the picture, and because it’s quite an old picture I did a double take,” Mr Hussain said. “Honestly he was such a lovely person, always going out of his way to help his neighbours out. He wasn’t one of those who would keep himself to himself. If he saw a new family had moved into the area he’d be the first to go over.
“He was definitely a big bonding factor in the community. You’d see him in the morning, in his vest sometimes, putting the neighbours bins out. It’s so sad. It’s devastating. It’s definitely a loss to the community. He was a model neighbour.”
“As a Muslim this devastates me because it says in the Quran that the murder of one innocent soul is the death of mankind ... It’s barbaric.
“It’s not the first time hatred has been seeded in Manchester and one thing that we have here as a community is that Manchester always comes together. That gives you some warmth. They won’t divide us. I think moving forward that’s the real message that needs to be pushed.”
Detective Chief Superintendent Lewis Hughes, who’s coordinating the casualty response, said: “My deepest sympathies are with Mr Daulby and Cravitz’s loved ones at this extremely hard time.
“Specially trained Family Liaison Officers are in contact with them. They will continue to update them on the investigation and support them throughout the coronial process
“Whilst there are processes which must be followed, we commit to being mindful of cultural preferences and sensitivities and to ensuring that these men and their loved ones’ wishes are respected.”
Police named Jihad al-Shamie as the attacker, a 35-year-old British citizen of Syrian descent who wore an explosive device as he drove into a group gathering for worship at the synagogue before stabbing members of the congregation. He was shot dead by police seven minutes after officers were alerted to the attack.
A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police said Shamie had not had any previous referrals to Prevent, the government’s anti-radicalisation programme.
It is understood he entered the UK as a young child and was granted British citizenship in 2006 as a minor.
