Manchester Synagogue Attacker Was on Bail for Alleged Rape When Attack Occurred
The suspect responsible for the violent assault at a Manchester synagogue had been released on bail from authorities related to an accusation of sexual assault at the time, as per reports.
The attacker, Jihad al-Shamie, who was 35 years old, was under investigation over an alleged sexual assault that reportedly occurred earlier this year.
Al-Shamie, of Syrian origin, is believed to have previous criminal convictions, though he had not drawn attention from counter-terrorism officials.
Shamie was killed by police gunfire by responding police after he killed a member of the Jewish community and severely injured several other people during the assault on the Heaton Park synagogue in north Manchester on Thursday.
Two men, 53-year-old Adrian Daulby and 66-year-old Melvin Cravitz, died in the attack. One of them succumbed to a round discharged by armed police targeting Shamie.
Anti-terror units and intelligence agencies are currently investigating the assailant's history, as it is believed that he chose Yom Kippur, the highest holy day in the Jewish year, to attack those praying.
Although Shamie was not known to anti-terror organizations or enrolled in the Prevent deradicalization program, he had been prosecuted for prior crimes.
It remains unclear when the alleged sexual assault took place, but Shamie had been bailed while being investigated by local law enforcement.
An insider indicated that he possessed other prior offenses, though for less serious crimes unrelated to terrorism.
“He was on nobody’s radar for terrorism but he certainly possessed a criminal record, though no indication he was going to do anything like this,” an informant remarked.
Police are examining whether Shamie sent a death threat to a ex-Member of Parliament in 2012.
A message to John Howell came from someone identifying as “Jihad Alshamie” and stated, “It is people like you who deserve to die.”
Howell, who stepped down as MP for Henley in 2024, expressed uncertainty if it was the same person and believed that police did not treat the death threat with adequate seriousness at the time.
Media coverage from 2012 indicated that he may have been singled out due to his pro-Israel stance.
“I don’t want to seem overdramatic, but you have to take seriously a threat when it says, ‘I would like to see you dead,’” Howell remarked at the time, in coverage by the Jerusalem Post.
“It is not just a question of me, it is my family and my staff. All it takes is one person out there who is weird enough, with a distorted view of life, to make an attempt to carry this out.” He noted that Thames Valley police had given him “extremely good security advice.”
Police have not confirmed whether the “Jihad Alshamie” who messaged Howell is the same individual who carried out the synagogue attack, but they are investigating a possible link.
Shabana Mahmood, Shabana Mahmood, stated that Shamie was not under active investigation by counter-terrorism police or security agencies when the incident. They had no reason to think he had previously been on their watchlist, although inquiries were continuing.
