English Town Mourns Victims Of Suspected Terror Attack

The English town of Reading mourned Monday for three people stabbed to death in what is being treated as a terror attack, gathering for a moment of silence as police questioned the suspected lone attacker.

More than 100 students lit candles and laid flowers in memory of history teacher James Furlong, who was named as one of the victims. At Holt School in nearby Wokingham, where he taught, a flag in the courtyard had been lowered to half-staff.

“He was so passionate and enthusiastic about history and about learning, and anything that was boring, anything you didn’t find interesting, he would make it interesting,″ former student Molly Collins told the BBC. “He would spend time with you, he got to know people individually, and he just always went the extra mile for everyone.”

Furlong’s friend, Joe Ritchie-Bennett, 39, was named by his family in Philadelphia as the second victim. The identity of the third victim has not been released.

The stabbing rampage took place Saturday evening as groups of people relaxed in Forbury Gardens park in Reading, a town of 200,000 people 40 miles (64 kilometers) west of London. A 25-year-old man who is believed to be the lone attacker is in custody but officials said the motive for the carnage was unclear.

Chief Constable John Campbell of Thames Valley Police said officers were called to reports of stabbings just before 7 p.m. and arrived to find a “horrific” scene. Unarmed officers detained the suspect within five minutes.

Police have not identified the suspect, but Britain’s national news agency, Press Association, and other media outlets named him as Khairi Saadallah, a Libyan asylum-seeker living in Reading.

Court records showed he had a history of mental health issues, suffering from the post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and a personality disorder. He also had six previous convictions for 11 crimes between June 2015 and January last year, including racially aggravated assault, knife offences and criminal damage.

The BBC reported that Saadallah was investigated by British security services last year over concerns he planned to travel abroad to join a jihadi group, but that he was not determined to be a major threat.

Questions were immediately raised about whether he should have been under closer watch. But Mark Rowley, former assistant commissioner for specialist operations in the Metropolitan Police, told the BBC that the task is daunting, given that some 40,000 people have touched the system.

“And in that 40,000 are lots of volatile people who dip in and out of interests in extreme ideology, and to spot one of those who is going to go from a casual interest into a determined attacker, which can happen in a matter of days, is the most wicked problem that the services face,” he said.

Police have two weeks to question the suspect without charge because he was arrested under the Terrorism Act.

Police warned the people of Reading to expect disruption in the community as the investigation continues.

The Philadelphia Inquirer quoted the father of Ritchie-Bennett as saying his son had moved to England from the U.S. around 15 years ago. His father, Robert Ritchie, said his son worked for a law firm in London before taking a job about 10 years ago at a Dutch pharmaceutical company that had its British headquarters in Reading. He called him an “absolutely fabulous guy,” whom he loved with all his heart.

“We’re mourning, and we’re trying to decide what we’re going to do,” he told the Inquirer. “It’s 3,500 miles away. They are still in lockdown over there with the coronavirus, and I don’t know what else to say.”

As news of the deaths seeped out into the community, friends grieved. Martin Cooper chief executive of LGBT+ charity Reading Pride, said both Furlong and Ritchie-Bennett were great supporters of the community.

“Their loss is a tragedy to so many people,” said Cooper, who often socialized with them. “They should be remembered as extremely friendly gentlemen who were always fun, engaging and a pleasure to be around. They were their own little support network for anybody to offload their troubles and concerns, and gave great advice.”