Reading terrorist was seen giving money away to charity before he stabbed three friends to death in a park to 'cleanse and prepare himself for jihad', inquest told

Libyan refugee Khairi Saadallah was given a whole-life sentence for the murdersJames Furlong, Joe Ritchie-Bennett, and David Wails killed in less than a minuteFriends in Forbury Gardens after the first Covid lockdown restrictions lifted

A terrorist was seen giving money away to charity before he stabbed three friends to death in a park in Reading, an inquest has heard.

History teacher James Furlong, 36, Joe Ritchie-Bennett, 39, and scientist David Wails, 49, were murdered in Forbury Gardens in less than a minute by Libyan refugee Khairi Saadallah who shouted ‘Allahu akhbar’ as he knifed them in June 2020.

Today, an inquest begun at the Old Bailey into the three friends’ deaths and heard Saadallah was seen giving money away to charity to ‘cleanse and prepare himself for jihad’ before stabbing the trio.

Stephen Young, Patrick Edwards and Nishit Nisudan were also injured before Saadallah threw away the 8in knife and ran off, pursued by an off-duty police officer.

The inquest heard the victims had ‘no chance to react, let alone defend themselves’ as footage of the stabbings captured on various CCTV cameras was played to the court.

Khairi Saadallah is serving a whole-life term for the terrorist attack in Reading on June 20, 2020

Joseph Ritchie-Bennett (left), James Furlong (centre) and David Wails (right) were killed during the attack in Forbury Gardens

Mr Furlong’s father, Gary, gave a statement to the press ahead of the inquest in which he said he wants to be reassured no stone has been left unturned in the quest for answers about how the murders of their loved ones could have taken place

Saadallah is currently serving a whole-life sentence behind bars after pleading guilty to three counts of murder.

Ahead of the hearing, Mr Furlong’s father, Gary Furlong, told reporters: ‘When the process concludes in February we want to be reassured that no stone has been left unturned in the quest for answers about how the murders of our loved ones could have taken place.

‘Nothing can bring back James, David and Joseph, but we owe it to them to find honest answers about whether their deaths could have been avoided and what could have been done to save us from their loss.’

Saadallah had avoided deportation for seven years having racked up a number of violent convictions before he stabbed the friends in the back of the head as they enjoyed the sunshine after the first Covid lockdown restrictions were lifted.

He had been freed from HMP Bullingdon, where he had befriended notorious hate preacher Omar Brooks, 15 days before the murders.

The senior investigating officer who oversaw the probe into the 2020 Reading terror attacks told Judge coroner Sir Adrian Fulford that Saadallah was ‘pretty indiscriminate’ in who he targeted.

Detective Chief Superintendent Oliver Wright, of Thames Valley Police, went through Saadallah’s final movements before the attacks which killed Mr Furlong, Mr Ritchie-Bennett and Mr Wails.

The attack in Forbury Gardens, Reading, saw Saadallah kill three members of the public and injure three others as he went on a knife rampage

Aftermath: Police tents pictured in Forbury Gardens after the Reading attack in June 2020

Counsel to the inquest Nicholas Moss KC asked the officer for his assessment on why Saadallah could be seen giving money away to charity before the killings, to which he replied: ‘I assess that was him cleansing himself and preparing himself for jihad.’

Addressing whether or not homophobia was a motivation for the murders, Mr Wright told the court: ‘My assessment was that KS targeted these victims because of where they were, not because of who they were.’

He added that Saadallah’s actions were ‘pretty indiscriminate’.

The inquest was played footage of the killings which was captured on various CCTV cameras.

Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Superintendent Oliver Wright agreed with counsel to the inquest Nicholas Moss KC that the victims had ‘no chance to react, let alone defend themselves’.

The inquest heard that 38 999 calls were made after the attacks and one was played to the court in which a distressed member of the public said: ‘Just get loads of police here now, do it now.’

The families of the trio also gave heartbreaking tributes during the hearing as My Ritchie-Burnett’s brother emotionally told how the calendar has been ‘locked in time’ since his death.

Robert Ritchie delivered a pen portrait of his brother via video link from the United States.

He said: ‘Joe was a blessing to the entire world. To know Joe was to love Joe. We have never met anyone who didn’t love Joe.

‘His mere presence made you smile. It took very little effort on his part to make you laugh.

Saadallah pleaded guilty to three counts of murder and three of attempted murder in following the attacks. He was seen giving money away to charity beforehand

Pictured: Saadallah purchasing the knife he would use to carry out his attack at a Morrisons supermarket

CCTV footage shows Saadallah during his terror attack

Saadallah being chased by police after his terror attack

‘We were having a hard time finding the correct words for this tribute to Joe, so we decided to focus on how Joe lived – not how he died, as that would do a dishonour to this great man, whom we loved every day of his life for 39 years, and whom we are proud to call our son, brother and uncle, but most importantly – our friend.’

Mr Ritchie said he was thankful that his final words to his brother were ‘I love you’ during a phone call six days before his murder.

He concluded his pen portrait by saying: ‘Rest in peace, Joe.’

Mr Ritchie said: ‘This should have never happened to you. We have missed you every day of our lives since June 20 2020, and we always will.’

Mr Ritchie said his mother and father ‘still have a calendar on the refrigerator that is locked in time’ since his brother’s murder.

He continued: ‘There is a hole in our hearts and a void that will never be filled since you were taken from us. Time has stood still for the Ritchie family.

‘They say people move on. We have not been able to move on without Joe. It has been too painful.’

Mr Furlong’s parents, Gary and Jan Furlong, also gave a pen portrait of their son to the inquest.

Beginning their tribute, Mr Furlong said: ‘James always sent humorous cards for birthdays, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.

‘I received my last Father’s Day card from James on the day of his death which, with a broken heart, I opened the following day.

‘True to form, the card made a joke about the size of my stomach.’

Also paying tribute to her son, Mrs Furlong told the inquest: ‘We are forever grateful for the amazing 36 years we had James in our lives.

‘He achieved more than most people achieve in a long lifetime. We must celebrate and remember how James lived, the qualities he lived by, and not how he died.

‘In James’s memory, if we all improve these qualities in our own lives, then his legacy will live on in all of us.

‘But most importantly, as James would famously tell the pupils at the end of the school day: ‘Be safe, be careful, and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do’.’

In a pen portrait written by Dr David Wails’s mother, Josephine Wails, she spoke of how her son worked with other scientists on a variety of projects across the EU.

The statement, read to the court by Mr Wails’s brother Andrew Wails, said: ‘We all missed him but despite his busy life he always came home at holiday times to see us, and we spoke on the phone every week.

‘Now all of his learning is wasted, and we are left heartbroken for the rest of our lives.

‘We live every day with the horrific memory of the brutal murders that took him from us and denied us the chance to even say goodbye.’

Sir Adrian earlier told the inquest during his opening remarks that the evidence the court will hear will ‘undoubtedly be challenging to listen to’.

He said the court would hear evidence of ‘what we as a society have lost’, referring to the victims.

Saadallah leaving his flat on the day that he stabbed three people to death

The Union Jack bandana worn by Saadallah during the terror attack

Mobile phone discarded by Saadallah after his terror attack

He continued: ‘We will hear background evidence concerning KS, his immigration history, his previous criminal offences and details of his mental health issues.

‘It will undoubtedly be challenging to listen to some of this testimony, especially for the family and friends of the deceased.’

The full inquest will look at the management of Saadallah while in prison and on probation, as well as his mental health.

The assessment and response to his risk of terrorism before the attacks will also come under scrutiny.

Previous hearings have heard Saadallah could not be deported shortly before the attacks, as he was facing a trial accused of eating a mattress at a police station and spitting at an officer in July 2019.

Home Office staff emailed Thames Valley Police on May 28 2020, saying they planned to deport Saadallah but were unable to ‘until the impending charges had been dealt with’.

A previous hearing heard that other Home Office staff were arguing against deporting him, as it was dangerous for him to return to Libya at the time.

The charges were dropped on June 1 2020, shortly before the murders.

Initiating inquest proceedings in January last year, coroner Martyn Zeidman KC said he wanted to investigate ‘what state agencies knew about Saadallah’ and the ‘risk he posed to the public’ before the killings.

The inquest, which is scheduled to last six weeks, continues.