Mother 'instantly knew' her son was behind knife attack and was shot dead

The mother of a terrorist, who was shot dead by UK police after he stabbed two pedestrians on a rampage last year, said she instantly knew "it was her son" when she first heard on TV the news about the knife attack and an encounter in Streatham on the fateful day, an inquest has heard.

Sudesh Amman, 20, was shot dead in Streatham on Feb 2 2020, 10 days after his release from prison after he went on a stabbing spree hurting two people.

Speaking at Royal Courts of Justice through a Tamil interpreter, Haleema Khan, mother of Amman, told an inquest that she instantly “knew it was Sudhesh” when she saw the news alert on TV about someone being shot dead in Streatham.

"I saw that someone was shot dead in Streatham at 2 pm. I knew it was Sudesh. I saw on a website that the dead man was wearing (his brother's) jacket and his shoes,” Khan said in her statement.

However, Khan said she had no idea her son was about to go on a stabbing rampage. 

Khan also told inquest he had called her shortly before the attack and said: "Bye bye, I love you, Mummy,” BBC reported.

The mother also claimed that after learning about the incident, she immediately called the probation service to tell officers that her 20-year-old son had been wearing the "described clothing" while she and her husband also tried calling on their son’s phone, reports said.

Recalling her last meeting with Amman on Jan. 30,  Khan said she gave him a £20 note as she said goodbye to her son for what turned out to be the last time.

In a previous session, the inquest heard how Amman was deemed to be "one of the most dangerous individuals" and police had warned against the release of the convicted terrorist as he “retained extremist views” in prison. 

Amman, originally from Queensbury, had also signalled his intent to strike again once in the community, the inquest heard earlier this week. 

Earlier, a lawyer for Amman's family called the operation a "miserable failure" and questioned why he was not arrested earlier, reports said.

The inquest continues.