Islamic extremists wearing fake suicide belts made from batteries, cans and boxer short elastic ‘tried to murder prison officer’ fired up by their ‘twisted and corrupted’ ideology, court hears
- Brusthom Ziamani, 24, and Baz Hockton, 26, allegedly attacked PO Neil Trundle
- They ‘lured’ him in cupboard and wore hoax suicide vests, the Old Bailey heard
- Ziamani alone admitted two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm
- Hockton admits wounding with intent to PO and both deny attempted murder
Islamic extremists wearing fake suicide belts made from batteries, cans and boxer short elastic ‘tried to murder a prison officer’ while fired up by their ‘twisted and corrupted’ ideology, a court heard.
Convicted terrorist Brusthom Ziamani, 24, and Baz Hockton, 26, allegedly screamed ‘Allahu Akbar’ and wore hoax suicide vests as they attacked Neil Trundle at HMP Whitemoor, Cambridgeshire.
They ‘lured’ PO Trundle into a cupboard space off-limits to prisoners by asking him to fetch them a spoon before setting upon him with makeshift weapons on January 9, jurors were told.
Ziamani charged at staff, revealing his fake bomb vest to them when they intervened to help their colleague, the Old Bailey heard.
Convicted terrorist Brusthom Ziamani (left), 24, and Baz Hockton (right), 26, allegedly screamed ‘Allahu Akbar’ and wore hoax suicide vests as they attacked Neil Trundle
A handout photo from CCTV showing the aftermath of the alleged attack by Ziamani and Hockton on the prison guard at Whitemoor jail in Cambridgeshire
He also assaulted female prison officer Georgina Ibbotson and nurse Jane Cowles when they intervened to help their colleague, jurors heard.
Both vests were created using elastic from a pair of underwear, bottles, batteries and pressurised cans, the court was told.
Both inmates were found to have been hoarding writings on Islamic extremist ideology after the brutal violence, it was said.
The pair allegedly used lumps of twisted metal, makeshift stabbing instruments and a homemade shank in a carefully planned ‘terrorist’ attack.
Ziamani, who was convicted of plotting to behead a British Army officer in 2015, wanted to murder ‘agents of the British state,’ jurors heard today.
The extremist believed that in doing so he would achieve ‘holy jihad’ and kept texts in his cell which vilified non-believers, it was said.
Prosecutor Annabel Darlow, QC, said in her closing speech to the jury: ‘It is clear from the ideological material that the underlying belief was that they had a duty to carry out jihad – jihad of course having a safer meaning to millions – but the twisted ideology has come to mean quite simply killing agents of the British state.
‘The kuffar (non-believers), as we’ve seen in the writings, are repeatedly vilified as beings who are there really to be defeated, terrorised.
A handout photo from CCTV showing the moments before the attack on the prison guard. Ziamani and Hockton denied attempted murder of Mr Trundle during a trial at the Old Bailey
The aftermath of the alleged attack in Cambridgeshire. Ziamani alone has admitted two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm against Georgina Ibbotson and Jane Cowles
‘In order to carry out jihad by attacking and killing as we say they planned to do an officer of the British state, if they succeeded they would accomplish their mission of what they regarded as holy jihad.’
The pair took elements of mainstream Islam and ‘corrupted’ it to suit their bloodthirsty agenda, the court heard.
‘What we’ve seen throughout this case we suggest is these defendants in the material they’ve written and looked at in their cells is they’ve taken small fragments, tiny fragments of one of the world’s oldest religions, Islam, and twisted and corrupted them into something that suits their corrupted purposes.’
Ziamani, formerly of Camberwell, southeast London, and Hockton, formerly of Ramsgate, both deny attempted murder.
Hockton admits wounding with intent to PO Trundle but Ziamani denies the charge.
Ziamani alone has admitted two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm against Ms Ibbotson and Ms Cowles.
The trial continues.