19-year-old Haroon Syed pleaded guilty back in April 2016 to planning acts of terrorism in the British capital. He has now been sentenced to life behind bars for his plans to nail bomb an Elton John concert in central London or other busy city areas.
Terrorist tries to buy weapons and a bomb to attack London
According to the London Metropolitan Police, Syed initially attempted to purchase a variety of weapons, including handguns, a machine gun and a suicide vest but after two fraudulent attempts to get a loan, he failed to raise the necessary funding.
The terror suspect then went on to attempt to purchase a bomb packed with nails, which he was planning to detonate at an Elton John concert to be held in Hyde Park in London, or in busy Oxford Street in central London.
Undercover MI5 officers catch Syed in his terror plans
Syed was captured due to the efforts of undercover MI5 officers. The officers had posed as fellow extremists online and Syed contacted them via social media. As reported by the BBC, he told one officer, who was posing as “Abu Yusuf,” of his plans to detonate a nail bomb in London, outlining the necessary items for the attack. Syed said the most important two items required for the planned terror attack were a machine gun and someone who could make a suicide vest of the “dugma,” or button, kind.
The potential terrorist went on to say that after doing damage with the machine gun, he would use the suicide vest, saying he was planning for “itishadi” (or martyrdom).
Teenager who plotted a nail bomb attack at Elton John’s Hyde Park concert faces a life sentence https://t.co/pGM0PkhhSD
— Daily Mail U.K. (@DailyMailUK) July 3, 2017
Computer history reveals damning evidence of terror plans
After police investigated Syed’s computer, its web history showed searches relating to ISIS propaganda, as well as bomb-making guides.
Among the visited links in the history were articles which justified the killing of women and children. Syed also went on to search for potential locations for his attack, including the Elton John concert to be held in Hyde Park, London on September 11, 2016, which also featured the bands Madness and Status Quo.
After Syed pleaded guilty back on April 27, he was sentenced to life in prison on Monday this week, but will be eligible for parole after 16 years and six months.
Judge Michael Topolski justified the sentence by stating Syed wished to launch “an act of mass murder.”
As noted by the New York Daily News, Syed’s life sentencing comes just over a month after a suicide bomber killed 22 people and injured dozens more at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester.
