Skip to main content

MI5 to begin urgent inquiry into London Bridge attacker

Published on: 4 Dec 2019

MI5 is to begin an urgent inquiry to ascertain how a man under active investigation for terror offences was able to carry out an attack and kill two members of the public.

Usman Khan, 28, knifed two young people to death at a venue close to London Bridge on Friday (November 29th 2019) and injured several more before he was tackled to the ground by passersby and shot dead by police.

It was later found that Khan had been convicted of plotting to bomb the London Stock Exchange in 2012 and imprisoned, but was released in December 2018 after serving just half of his sentence.

MI5 had been keeping track of the former prisoner, but gave him one of the lowest priorities because his risk to the public was deemed to be low. This is in line with the status given to most offenders when they return to the community under a release licence.

Now, MI5 and Scotland Yard are investigating and also reviewing licence conditions for other former terror offenders who have been released early.

Khan is the second person under active investigation by MI5 who has gone on to kill, with the other being 2017 London Bridge attacker Khuram Butt.