The man who fatally stabbed British lawmaker David Amess was referred to an official counter-terrorist scheme for those thought to be at risk of radicalization, according to media reports.
Police late on Saturday said that detectives had until Oct. 22 to question the suspect after he was detained under the Terrorism Act, which allowed them to extend his detention.
Amess, 69, was talking with voters at a church in the small town of Leigh-on-Sea east of London when he was stabbed to death on Friday.
Photo: AFP
Police have said they are investigating “a potential motivation linked to Islamist extremism.”
The investigation is being led by Scotland Yard’s Counter Terrorism Command.
The BBC said that it had received confirmation from Whitehall officials that the man’s name is Ali Harbi Ali.
Ali, a British citizen of Somali heritage, had been referred to Prevent, the UK’s scheme for those thought at risk of radicalization a few years ago, the BBC reported.
Ali is believed not have spent long in the program, which is voluntary, and was never formally a “subject of interest” to MI5, the domestic security agency, the BBC said.
Police and security services believe the attacker acted alone and was “self-radicalized,” while he might have been inspired by al-Shabaab, al-Qaeda-linked Islamists in Somalia, the Sunday Times reported.
His father, Harbi Ali Kullane, a former adviser to the prime minister of Somalia, told the Sunday Times that his son was in custody, adding: “I’m feeling very traumatized.”
Police said they have been carrying out searches at three addresses in the London area in a “fast-paced investigation,”
On Saturday evening, hundreds of mourners attended a candle-lit vigil at a sports field near the scene of the crime, holding a minute’s silence in the Conservative lawmaker’s memory.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson earlier on Saturday visited the crime scene to pay his respects, laying floral wreaths outside the church with Labour Party leader Keir Starmer.
Residents, including members of the Muslim community, also heaped bouquets next to the police tape.
Lawmakers and their staff have been attacked before, although it is rare.
However, their safety was thrown into sharp focus by Brexit, which stoked deep political divisions and has led to outbursts of angry, partisan rhetoric.
Amess, a Brexit backer, had written about public harassment and online abuse in his book Ayes & Ears: A Survivor’s Guide to Westminster, published last year.
“These increasing attacks have rather spoilt the great British tradition of the people openly meeting their elected politicians,” Amess said.
Lawmakers have had to install security cameras and only meet constituents by appointment, he added.
Unlike some lawmakers, Amess publicized meeting times for constituents on Twitter and held them in public places, while asking for people to book ahea.
The Sun tabloid reported that the attacker stabbed Amess before sitting down and waiting for police to arrive.
The Daily Mail newspaper said that he had booked an appointment a week ahead.
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