London’s Metropolitan Police released police bodycam footage on June 7 showing the moment anti-terror officers swooped in on a suspected al-Qaeda bomb-maker who was carrying three knives close to Downing Street and the Houses of Parliament.
Khalid Mohammed Omar Ali, 27, of north London, was arrested on April 27, 2017, police said. In September, police said he plead not guilty to charges of terrorism and explosives offences related to time spent in Afghanistan, allegedly making bombs in 2012 and earlier.
The footage showed police rushing over to Ali, shouting “Get on the floor,” before bringing him to the ground and placing handcuffs on him behind his back. They then searched Ali, finding three knives. “He’s racking them up,” an officer is heard saying after finding the third knife.
During the trial at the Old Bailey in early June, it was alleged that Ali had spent five years in Afghanistan making bombs and detonated more than 300, The Times reported.
Prosecutor Brian Altman, QC, reportedly told the court Ali had intended to carry out a knife attack in Westminster, while Ali claimed he was carrying the knives for his own protection, the report said.
Ali’s arrest came just over a month after Khalid Masood drove a car into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge and Bridge Street, killing five people and injuring dozens. Credit: Metropolitan Police via Storyful
