Exclusive
NOTTS SHOCK
Nottingham ‘attacker’ who stabbed three people to death WAS known to MI5… because he knocked on their door
THE lone-wolf Nottingham attacker was known to MI5 - because he literally knocked on their door.
The Sun can reveal the 31-year-old suspected of killing three turned up at the security service’s London HQ last year and demanded to be let in.
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The man was “moved on” and his name taken after the bizarre incident, understood to have taken place in late August 2022, outside the super-secure Thames House building.
A security source said: “He turned up one day and literally started banging on the door. He was moved on and logged.
"This happens from time to time.”
The Sun understands his name then came up when spooks were searching for information in the wake of the fatal spree early on Tuesday.
READ MORE ON THE TRAGEDY
Thames House was built in Millbank on the North bank of the Thames in the late 1920s as the headquarters for Imperial Chemical Industries and is adorned with statues of St George and Britannia sculpted by Charles Sargeant Jagger.
However, it does not have the same security features as MI6’s modern offices in Vauxhall, which boast concrete block defences and a perimeter wall.
Instead, pedestrians can walk right along the pavement outside Thames House.
The Home Office declined to comment on the incident.
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Nottinghamshire Police arrested the man on Tuesday morning on suspicion of murder.
CCTV footage showed the moment the suspect was Tasered by police and arrested.
University of Nottingham students Barnaby Webber, Grace Kumar, both 19, and school caretaker Ian Coates, 66, were tragically killed in the horrifying scenes on Tuesday.
At 5.30am a man, believed to be of West African origin, was dragged by cops from a white van that had just smashed into three people on Maple Street in the city.
One has been left in a critical condition while two others had minor injuries.
The owner of the van, Mr Coates, was later found dead.
What we know:
- "Major incident" declared in Nottingham and six roads closed
- Police confirm two people found dead on Ilkeston Road just after 4am
- School caretaker Ian Coates, in his 60s, was found dead on nearby Magdala Road in city centre
- Three others injured - one critically - after van tried to mow them down on Milton Street
- Witness tells of hearing gunshots before cops swarmed van on Maple Street, seeing a man arrested on suspicion of murder
- A second witness recalled the horrific moment she discovered the first victim of the attack
- Terror cops with assault rifles raid home on Ilkeston Road
- Cops reveal they're not looking for anyone else in connection to tragedy
- It was revealed the Nottingham suspect is a foreign national with "mental health issues"
- Police say they believe the suspect stole the van before mowing people down
- Grace Kumar and Barnaby Webster, both 19, were named as victims of the attack
- Their dads paid an emotional tribute to the pair
- Timeline reveals how horror unfolded
- Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pays tribute to victims
- The suspect tried to get inside the open window of a bail hostel minutes after the attack
- CCTV footage showed the moment the suspect was Tasered by police and arrested
Just minutes after the tragedy, a man dressed all in black, and believed to be the suspect, tried to get inside the open window of a bail hostel.
Exclusive footage obtained by Sun Online showed a man, who would give his name only as Trevor, punch the intruder in the face so he couldn't climb in.
The families and friends of the victims gathered on Wednesday evening to pay tribute.
Barnaby's dad David gave a brief emotional statement.
He said: "I'm lost for words. I've lost my baby boy and I can't even comprehend how I'm going to deal with it.
"He loved it here. He couldn't wait to come back. It drove me mad. His heart will be with you guys forever. Thank you so much."
Grace's dad Dr Sanjoy Kumar thanked the students for coming to the vigil, adding "it's such a lovely sign of the bond you have".
He told them to "look after your friends and the people around you" and added: "Grace was also like Barney, she loved coming up to Nottingham."
Grace, who's family live in north-east London, wanted to enjoy a few final nights out before coming home for the summer, he added.
Dr Sanjoy added: "The love we have out here I wish we had it everywhere. Look after each other, that's the big thing. Look after your friends and the people around you. It's so important.
"Grace and her friend fell together and you just need to be friends with everyone and love everyone. I wish we had more of it.
"For everyone who's here I really thank you for being here. It means so much to Sinead my wife and me."
Mr Coates' son said “I’m broken” and that he is “still in shock”.
Speaking at the scene of the murder, his sons said he was "a die-hard Forest fan" and a keen fisherman who took young people from deprived backgrounds fishing to try to divert them from crime.
Lee said his father's death had "rocked everyone's world", adding: "If we had to think about it, he'd be lying in a bed with us holding his hand, him dying naturally in 20 to 30 years' time."
"Not dying on a street because some guy decided it's not his day today," Lee's brother James added.
He went on: "He was everyone's friend, always willing to help.
"Nobody deserves this but he definitely didn't. None of them did, it's a tragedy."
Chief Constable Kate Meynell said: “First and foremost my thoughts are with all the families affected by this shocking series of events.
“It is unimaginable to understand what they are going through.
“I am very aware of the impact that these horrendous crimes will have had not only on Nottingham and Nottinghamshire but also across the whole country.
“I am determined that we will work with community members, students from both universities and others impacted to reassure and support them. It is important that as a city we stand together.
“I would like to thank the public for their response to these tragic incidents.
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"We have received a high number of calls with people offering information and support."
Anyone with information can contact Nottinghamshire Police on 0800 0961011.
HOW THE HORROR ATTACK HAPPENED
A KNIFEMAN went on an horror rampage in Nottingham on Tuesday morning, killing three people:
4.04am
Police were called to Ilkeston Road after two people were attacked by a man with a knife.
The two students, Barnaby Webber and Grace Kumar, both 19, were unresponsive when police arrived.
A witness told the BBC he saw a young man and young woman being stabbed.
The man, who did not give his name, said he heard "awful, blood-curdling screams" and looked out of his window to see a "black guy dressed all in black with a hood and rucksack grappling with some people".
He told the broadcaster: "She was screaming, 'Help!' I just wish I'd shouted something out of the window to unnerve the assailant.
"I saw him stab the lad first and then the woman. It was repeated stabbing - four or five times. The lad collapsed in the middle of the road.
"The girl stumbled towards a house and didn't move. The next minute she had disappeared down the side of a house and that's where they found her.
"I'd say it all happened within five or six minutes. The attacker then just walked off up Ilkeston Road towards town, as calm as anything."
4.08am
A man "matching the description of the suspect" tried to gain access to supported living complex in Mapperley Road.
CCTV footage showed he was hit in the face walking away.
5am
Police officers knock on doors in Ilkeston Road asking for CCTV footage, according to residents.
Police believe the suspect then attacked Ian Coates and stole his van.
A passerby dialled 999 and police arrived to find the school caretaker dead on Magdela Road with knife injuries.
5.30am
The stolen van was then used to drive at three people waiting at a bus stop on Milton Street.
Lynn Haggitt said: "He looked in his mirror, saw a police car behind him. He then quickened up. There were two people, two in the corner, he went straight into these two people.
"The woman went on the kerb, the man went up in the air. There was such a bang. I wish I never saw it. It's really shaken me up.
"I went over. Perhaps I shouldn't have gone over but I wanted to see if I could help.
"He (the van driver) backed up after he hit... and drove up Parliament Street.
"The woman was sitting up on the kerb. She looked OK. The man was laying down but then he got up, sat on the side waiting for an ambulance," Ms Haggitt said.
She added: "I can't believe he was able to get up after the head wound."
One man was taken to hospital in a critical condition while two others suffered minor injuries.
Just after 5.30am
Police Tasered a man after he abandoned the van and was said to have run at cops with a knife on Bentinck Road.
He was arrested on suspicion of murder.
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