The footage was played at the trial of Ali Harbi Ali, who is accused of murdering the veteran Tory MP Sir David Amess.
22 March 2022
Murder trial jurors have been shown chilling CCTV of a terror suspect’s journey to fatally stab Sir David Amess at a constituency appointment, after telling the veteran MP’s aide: “I don’t think I’ll take too long.”
Ali Harbi Ali, 26, could be seen walking alongside unsuspecting members of the public, including school children, as he made the near-two-and-a-half hour trek from his home in north London along busy high streets and residential areas to Belfairs Methodist Church in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, on October 15 last year.
Ali, wearing a long, khaki coat and with a black, backpack slung over his right shoulder, could even be seen appearing to assist a fellow passenger with directions as he waited for his connection at Barking railway station.
The Old Bailey heard he then spent about 25 minutes lying in wait, yards from the church building where he was due to meet Sir David, having duped his staff into believing he was a healthcare worker moving to the area and wanted to discuss local matters.
Jurors previously heard that Ali had spent years hatching his plot, researching a number of potential targets including Michael Gove, Dominic Raab and Sir Keir Starmer, before settling on 69-year-old Tory backbencher, Sir David.
He stabbed Sir David 21 times with a carving knife with a 12-inch blade as he sent a WhatsApp message apologising to his family and friends, attempting to justify his actions.
Ali then spoke to his worried sister on the phone for 14 minutes, as Sir David lay bleeding to death, before being apprehended by two unarmed plain-clothes police officers, who pinned him to the floor and arrested him.
Sir David, a married father-of-five, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Ali, from Kentish Town, north London, has denied preparing terrorist acts and murder.
The trial continues.
