Armed officers who shot the London Bridge terrorists believed explosives were about to be detonated and lives were at risk, an inquest heard. A Metropolitan Police officer, known only as BY28, told the Old Bailey he feared for his life as he made his way to the scene on June 3 2017. The officer said his main objective was to "protect the innocent parties" and get there as quickly as possible.
BY28 told the inquest that as his vehicle arrived he spotted a man who "looked like he'd been painted in blood". In the space of 10 minutes, Khuram Butt, 27, and Rachid Redouane, 30, from Barking and Youssef Zaghba, 22, from Ilford, had ploughed into pedestrians on London Bridge and run amok around Borough Market with knives and fake suicide belts.
All three were shot dead in Stoney Street, bringing to an end a rampage which left eight people dead and 48 seriously injured.
The officer said he would ideally liked to have been 100 metres away from the suspects but said they needed to stay for the safety of civilians. The inquest continues.
