A TOP cop has promised to fully review the conclusions of an inquest into the death of three people during a terrorist attack in Reading’s Forbury Gardens.
Assistant Chief Constable Tim Metcalfe, chief officer lead for Counter Terrorism Policing South East, said police would reflect on the evolving terrorist threat the UK is facing, with many cases involving people with “complex mental health and social needs”.
“We also are seeing more individuals with mixed or unclear ideology, who can be more difficult to assess and manage,” he said.
“We must now fully review and reflect on the conclusions from the Judge Coroner and ensure we do all we can to strengthen our efforts to keep our communities and our country safe.”
A finding from the inquest, which concluded at The Old Bailey on Friday, April 26, was that state agencies, including the police, could have prevented the deaths of James Furlong, Dr David Wails and Joseph Ritchie-Bennett, who were murdered by Khairi Saadallah in June 2020.
Judge Coroner Sir Adrian Fulford’s inquest found that the brother of Saadallah has made a 999 call before the attack warning police of the potential for an attack.
“If his extremist risk had been better analysed, KS would probably then have been recalled to custody on 19 June 2020 meaning these attacks would never have happened,” Sir Adrian said.
Responding, ACC Metcalfe said: “We in policing have not waited until this point to make changes where needed. When reviewing our actions in relation to this case, we identified a number of areas where changes were needed, or processes could be improved.
“Much has already been done to address these issues, but let me be clear, I know that there is still work to do.
“We are unrelenting in our commitment to learn, change and improve where required.
“We will continue to work with other agencies locally and nationally to ensure learning from this terrible attack is shared and acted upon.”
He also paid tribute to the families of the victims, as well as the town.
“My thoughts, and those of everyone at Counter Terrorism Policing and Thames Valley Police are with the families and friends of James Furlong, Joseph Ritchie-Bennett, and Dr David Wails,” he said.
“They are also with the people of Reading, who I know have been deeply affected by what happened in Forbury Gardens on June 20, 2020.
“Throughout the inquest hearing, the families and loved ones of those killed that evening have shown great dignity during what must have been an extremely traumatic and difficult process.”
He added: “I appreciate their enduring patience and understanding, given the time it has taken to get to this stage.
“Throughout this hearing, they have heard detailed evidence about what happened and what was known about the offender prior to the incident from a range of different agencies. It cannot be underestimated how difficult that is to hear.”
