By Eric King
48 Year Old Darren Osborne who killed Makram Ali after deliberately ploughing into a crowd of people in Finsbury Park in June has been sentenced to 43 years imprisonment.
Sentencing him, Justice Cheema-Grubb told Osborne the jury had seen through his “pathetic last-ditch attempt to deceive them”, by claiming an apparent accomplice called “Dave” had been the driver.
SUICIDE MISSION
Justice Grubb said Osborne had planned “a suicide mission” and expected to be shot dead by the police. He was guilty of a “terrorist murder”, she added.
Osborne had been “rapidly radicalized over the internet by those determined to spread hatred of Muslims”, she said.
“Your use of Twitter exposed you to racists and anti-Islamic ideology,” she added.
“In short, you allowed your mind to be poisoned by those who claimed to be leaders.”
A statement from Mr Ali’s daughter was read to the court before the sentencing, in which she said she had suffered “recurring nightmares” since the death of her father.
Ms Akhtar said: “The incident was near to our house and I walk past it most days. It keeps me awake at night thinking about the attack.”
She added that her mother was now scared to go outside by herself for fear of being attacked.
“My father was the most sincere and warmest person I know. He was full of jokes and laughter and full of love for his family and grandchildren.
“His life was taken in a cruel way by a narrow-minded, heartless being,” the statement added.
The prosecutor said that other witnesses suffered feelings of anxiety, flashbacks, fear of going out and loss of confidence, prosecutors said.
KILL
Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb told Osborne, from Cardiff: “This was a terrorist attack. You intended to kill.”
Mr Ali’s family said they could not imagine the trauma he felt as he died.
Speaking outside court, his daughter, Ruzina Akhtar, said: “Our father, like the victims of most terrorism, was entirely innocent which makes his death in this violent way all the more hurtful.”
“He was such a peaceful and simple man, he had no bad thoughts for anyone,” she added.
Osborne mowed down worshippers in Finsbury Park shortly after 12.15am on 19 June last year, killing Mr Ali and injuring nine others.
Jurors heard a list of Osborne’s previous convictions which included a long list id violent offences -spanning more than 30 years.
Osborne had appeared before the courts on 33 occasions for 102 offences
The judge summed up Osborne’s previous convictions as showing him to be a “belligerent and violent character”.
Mr Ali died immediately after being struck by the van and had tyre marks on his torso. The murder was unthinkably evil and must have left the family and pieces. He will rot in jail.
The weird father-of-four, who was also found guilty of attempted murder, said “God bless you all, thank you”, as he was led away from the court. The case is a sad reality of how bad evil and ignorance can get when individuals allow themselves to be consumed by it