Finsbury Park terror suspect’s mum refuses to defend son, 47, as it’s claimed he vowed to ‘do some damage to Muslims’ just a day before attack
THE mum of Finsbury Park terror suspect Darren Osborne refused to defend him yesterday as locals claimed the 47-year-old vowed "to do some damage to Muslims" just a day before the attack.
Christine, 72, who screamed in horror when she spotted her son in TV footage of the attack, told The Sun: "I know mother's normally defend [their kids].
"But I’m not going to, he has four children and that’s my worry at the moment."
Former pals have spoken of a violent past and volatile behaviour the day before the attack.
What we know so far:
- A van ran down pedestrians on Seven Sisters Road in Finsbury Park, North London just after 12:20am on Monday morning
- One man died and nine people were injured outside Finsbury Park Mosque as worshippers left a late evening prayer meeting
- Police have confirmed they are treating the incident as a terror attack
- A man, 47, was arrested at the scene and is being held on suspicion of attempted murder and terrorism offences
- He reportedly screamed "kill me, kill all Muslims" as hero bystanders tackled him to the ground and was filmed blowing kisses from the back of the police van
- The man who died was already receiving first aid and it is not yet known if his death was caused by attack, Met Police have said
- Photos of the van used in the smash show it bearing the logo of a Wales-based rental company
- Police are searching residential addresses in the Cardiff area
- A heroic imam has been praised for his efforts to calm the chaotic situation in the aftermath of the attack.
- The Muslim Council of Britain has condemned the attack and has appealed for calm in its wake
- Prime Minister Theresa May described the attack as "sickening" and visited the scene after chairing a Cobra meeting
- Jeremy Corbyn said he was "totally shocked" and has today visited the scene
Osborne's mum described him as a “troubled soul” whose mental health and anger issues had worsened in recent weeks, but insisted he had never shown any hatred towards Muslims.
One Muslim neighbour spoke of jibes Osborne had made to her son.
Mum-of-six Khadijah Sherazi, a British Islamic convert, moved next door to Osborne six months ago.
She said Osborne had called her son "inbred" out of the blue.
She added: “My partner is Pakistani, sometimes they marry their cousins so white people call them inbreds.
“When I wear the full hijab I get called racist names. I don’t wear it round here because I know half the people don’t like it.
";He just said inbred to my 12-year-old son Nadeem."
But, the comment did not stop her being surprised to see Osborne named as the suspect.
She said: “This is a complete shock, I thought he was a normal neighbour, laughing and joking. He fixed my leaky tap the other day.
“He seemed like a good dad, he takes the kids to school and back every day and walks the dogs.”
Saleem Naema, who is from Iraq, lives on the same road.
He said: “I couldn’t believe when I realised it was him who was accused.
“We’d say hello everyday when dropping the kids off at school and he never had a problem with me at all.
“I’m a Muslim and he was never nasty or racist towards me.”
Those who knew Osborne from his days in Weston-super-Mare told yesterday how he was forced to leave the area after a string of violent clashes fuelled by drink.
Pal David Main said: “He was a serious fighter who got off on violence and liked to be the centre of attention.
“That was probably what the van was all about.
“He stayed with my family for a while but would get scary and drink and was always in trouble.
“But this is still shocking.”
Another woman from Weston, who asked to remain anonymous told the Daily Mail: "The words I would use to describe Darren would be a 'bloody psycho'.
"He is vile. He would just drink too much and flip the switch I guess. I only witnessed one of his fights. It must have been 15 odd years ago."
A former barmaid in the area told the paper Osborne had once grabbed her by the throat and pinned her against a wall as she worked.
Neighbours in Cardiff spoke last night about Osborne’s aggressive behaviour.
Peter Mackuin, 53 said: “Around two weeks ago I saw him and he was a right state.
“He looked like he’d been crying. Something was definitely wrong.
“His missus had been out looking for him as he had been gone all day after a blazing row. I saw him wandering out of the woods.”
Stephanie Kibble, 22, said: “He was in my house a week ago helping my mum with her TV.
“He was lovely with us but there were always police around because he argued with his wife and had trouble with his eldest daughter.”
Pharmacist Rebecca Carpenter, 26, said: "He's quite a shouty person, always shouting at his wife and kids - he seemed aggressive and strange.
“He drove around in an old car that was always damaged — but he has never caused us any real problems, but we could often hear him shouting from the other side of the street.”
Another neighbour said: “I actually heard him singing in the street yesterday — weird really. I never knew what he did for a living but Sarah is a hard worker.”
Osborne grew up in Weston- super-Mare, Somerset, before moving to Cardiff with Sarah and their four children, who are aged between five and 16.
He used to work as a barman but had been jobless for some time.
Chef Sarah is the family’s breadwinner, working at an upmarket pub in the affluent suburb of Lisvane.
Osborne allegedly hired the van used in the attack from Pontyclun Van Hire for £80.
The firm’s spokesman said: “We at Pontyclun Van Hire are shocked and saddened by the incident that took place at Finsbury Park last night.
“We are co-operating fully with the Metropolitan Police investigation and our thoughts are with those who have been injured in this cowardly attack.”