Failings by MI5 and the police contributed to the deaths of two graduates who were killed by a convicted terrorist, a jury has found.
Cambridge University alumni Saskia Jones and Jack Merritt were stabbed by Usman Khan at a rehabilitation event at Fishmongers' Hall in November 2019.
Khan had been released from prison 11 months previously, the inquests at London's Guildhall heard.
The jury concluded that both victims had been unlawfully killed.
Jurors found there had been unacceptable management and a lack of accountability in the oversight of Khan, who had been allowed to travel on his own to London.
They concluded there had been failures in the sharing of information between state agencies responsible for monitoring the convicted terrorist.
Deficiencies in the organisation of the event at Fishmongers' Hall, including a lack of security measures, were also found to have been a factor in the two deaths.
After the conclusions were delivered, the forewoman of the jury said the jurors wanted to send "heartfelt condolences to the families of Saskia and Jack" who "clearly touched the lives of so many, ours included".
"We are so incredibly sorry. The world lost two bright stars that dreadful day," she said.
The forewoman added that the jury wanted to "thank the astonishing individuals who put themselves in real danger to help and our incredible emergency services for their response, both that day and every day".
Khan, who was from Stafford, had been released from prison in December 2018 after spending eight years inside for planning to set up a terrorist training camp in Pakistan.
The 28-year-old stabbed Mr Merritt, 25, and Ms Jones inside the hall before he was chased along London Bridge by members of the public and shot dead by police.
At the conclusion of the inquests, 23-year-old Ms Jones's family said there were still "unanswered questions relating to failures of a number of organisations and individuals".
"It is beyond understanding and astonishing that not one of the state agencies sufficiently considered the associated risk and therefore questioned the wisdom of sending Usman Khan unaccompanied to London," the family said in a statement.
They also criticised Learning Together, which ran the prisoner rehabilitation programme, and the Fishmongers' Company over failures to keep those at the event safe.
Analysis
By Daniel Sandford, home affairs correspondent
When you go into these inquests, you're never quite sure how the evidence will unfold.
For seven weeks, we've heard details of his behaviour in prison, of how he was managed on release from prison and of how the key bits of intelligence about him were handled.
And bit by bit, the families of Saskia Jones and Jack Merritt have become more and more horrified by what they've heard.
And the jury, it seems, have also agreed with the families, because when asked three key questions they concluded that:
- The management of Khan in the community contributed to the deaths of Saskia Jones and Jack Merritt
- The failure to share intelligence properly contributed to the deaths
- The security arrangements at Fishmongers' Hall contributed to the deaths
So all in all it has been a damning set of conclusions from the jury after hearing weeks of evidence.
A Court of Appeal ruling had meant Khan had to be automatically released on licence from prison, with the Parole Board having no say as to whether he was safe to be freed.
Throughout his time in jail, he was classed among the 70 highest-risk inmates in the country, was frequently involved in violence and radicalisation, and spent a significant period under investigation by MI5.
Upon his release Khan was assessed as being more dangerous than when he went into prison and there was an imminent risk of him causing serious harm to the public.
MI5 launched a new investigation into Khan but the intelligence was never shared with his probation officer nor the Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) panel.
Khan's trip to Fishmongers' Hall on the day of the killings was his first unescorted journey out of Staffordshire following his release from prison.
Police, MI5 and probation services all knew that he was going to attend the event but the inquests heard that none of them took any steps to guard against this.
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2021-05-28 13:29:37Z
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