Westminster terrorist and Taliban bomb maker Khalid Ali attacked prison officer with frying pan then stabbed him with Biro during attack at Wakefield jail

A terrorist who plotted to kill MPs outside the Houses of Parliament attacked a prison officer with a frying pan and stabbed him with a pen in Wakefield Prison.
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Khalid Ali, who is also serving a life sentence for making bombs for the Taliban, struck the officer over the head at least ten times during the attack at the maximum security jail.

Leeds Crown Court heard the officer suffered a puncture wound as Ali thrust a Biro into his chest.

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After the attack Ali, who is serving a 40 year sentence, shouted: "This is going to happen every day for the next 40 years."

HMP WakefieldHMP Wakefield
HMP Wakefield

As he was dragged back his cell he also said: "Every day this is going to happen. You wanted it. You asked for it. You wanted the terrorist."

James Gelsthorpe, prosecuting, said the attack happened on the prison's C wing on March 7 last year.

CCTV cameras captured the moment the 31-year-old lifer attacked the officer from behind as he walked past him on the prison landing.

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Mr Gelsthorpe said: "The defendant waits for the complainant to pass him before striking him in a cowardly yet savage attack."

The officer tried to protect himself and took out his baton as his colleagues went to help him.

The footage showed Ali holding a frying pan in one hand and a pen in the other.

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The prosecutor said the defendant could be heard saying: "I will kill you - Allahu Akbar."

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Officers and other inmates who witnessed the incident were shocked by the severity of the attack.

One officer described how it was the worst attack he had seen in 28 years.

Mr Gelsthorpe added: "This was a vicious, unprovoked assault on an unsuspecting member of staff, designed to inflict as much damage as possible in the shortest period of time."

The injured officer realised he had been stabbed in the chest as he was receiving medical treatment.

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He spent a week off work after the incident and continues to suffer from headaches.

Ali pleaded guilty to attempting to inflict grievous bodily harm with intent.

Noel Casey, mitigating, said: "There can be no argument against the sustained nature of the attack."

He added: "This is a man who is barely 30, facing a tariff of 40 years.

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"He has so long to serve that there really is no light at the end of the tunnel."

The Recorder of Leeds, Judge Guy Kearl QC, increased Ali's minimum term to 44 years.

The judge said: "It seems to me that this was an extremely violent incident.

"You used full force in the blows. You targeted his head.

"It is suggested this incident was over in a matter of seconds. I counted ten blows to or around the head but there were more off camera.

"At the time you were shouting that you wanted to kill him.

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"I am satisfied that you intended to cause as much damage as you could.

"I do not find it to be a religiously or racially motivated attack. It was simply a reaction to those in authority."

Ali, a plumber, had been tracked by police since he returned from Afghanistan, where he spent five years making Taliban bombs used to maim and kill coalition troops.

In late 2016, the FBI matched his fingerprints to those on two caches of explosives recovered in 2012.

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Sentencing, Judge Nicholas Hilliard QC handed Ali three life sentences.

He gave a minimum of 40 years for making IEDs for the Taliban in 2012 and 25 years for the plot to kill in Britain and attract “maximum publicity and instil terror”.

He said: “I am absolutely sure you were in Afghanistan. You were a valued member of a team making IEDs that were detonated in combat between January and July 2012.

“I have no doubt whatsoever that there is a very considerable risk of your committing offences of violence in the future and cause death or serious injury as a result. I’m sure your plan was to attack and kill someone in central London.

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“Your preparations were complete and you very simply had to identify your precise target and his or her death was very likely to be caused by a knife attack. You would kill any police officer you could.”