Warning: This story and images may be stressful for some. Discretion requested.
The Sri Lankan terrorist had planned an earlier knife attack
Venkat Raman
Auckland, September 3, 2021
The Sri Lankan terrorist who knifed six people at a supermarket in West Auckland earlier this afternoon cannot be named because of a suppression order issued by a New Zealand Court.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern expressed her frustration at a media conference at 5.15 pm along with Police Commissioner Andrew Coster, saying that she was trying all options to get legal clearance so that the government can place all information on the public domain.
All that we can say about the terrorist who was gunned down by the Police is that he was a 32-year-old Sri Lankan national who arrived in New Zealand in 2011, that he sported extreme and violent ideologies of ISIS and has been under Police watch since 2016. We can also say that he is being referred to as ‘S.’
Earlier ‘Lone Wolf’ attack plan
The New Zealand Herald published a news item on August 16, 2021, which said that the terrorist had planned ‘a lone wolf’ knife attack in Auckland but could not be charged as a terrorist because of a longstanding gap in our Counterterrorism laws.
“The Crown sought to prosecute the man but a High Court Judge ruled that preparing a terrorist attack was not in itself an offence under the legislation. ‘S’ was prosecuted on lesser charges. On May 26, 2021, he was found guilty by a jury of possessing propaganda material supportive of Islamic State. He was acquitted on other charges of possessing a graphic video depicting a prisoner being decapacitated and possession of an offensive weapon. A report prepared for his sentencing in July said that ‘S has the means and motivation to commit violence in the community.’ Despite Police concerns about the threat to public safety, he was sentenced to one of supervision, a community-based sentence designed to rehabilitate low-level offenders,” the publication said.
However, the Covert Police Specialist Tactics Group (STG) had kept him under constant vigil.
No one else is connected
Ms Ardern said that the terrorist was acting alone and that it would be wrong to direct any frustration at anyone other than this person.
“What happened today was despicable. It was carried out by an individual. We have utilised every legal and surveillance power available to us to try and keep people safe from this individual. Many agencies and people were involved and all were motivated by the same thing – trying to keep people safe,” she said.
Commissioner Coster said that the Police were still analysing the information that they have received but said that the dead terrorist was under heavy surveillance because of concerns about his ideology.
Horrible incident
“He entered the (Countdown) Supermarket and obtained a knife from the shelves and commence his attacks. Our surveillance teams were as close as they possibly could be and when the man approached Police with the knife, he was shot and killed.
“I acknowledge that this situation raises questions about whether the Police could have done more and whether they could have intervened more quickly. Based on the information available to me, I am satisfied that the staff involved did not only what we expect they would do in this situation but also did it with great courage,” he said.
“The reality is that when you are surveilling someone on a 24/7 basis, it is not possible to be immediately next to them at all times. The staff intervened as quickly as they could and they prevented further injury in what was a terrifying situation,” he added.
As Auckland Mayor Phil Goff said, “It is appalling that he could cause so much hurt in the space of a minute, just with a knife. But I guess the police interceded as quickly as they were able and ultimately, he has paid the price of his actions.”
This was the second major episode of violence at a Countdown Supermarket this year.
Four people were taken to hospital after an attack at a Supermarket in Dunedin on May 10, 2021. Among those injured were two Countdown staff. A 42-year-old man has pleaded not guilty to four charges of attempted murder.
