The Fishmongers’ Hall Incident
Note: This version of the incident is based on reading a wide variety of newspaper and TV stories. Any errors are due to faulty information provided by the media or even my own misinterpretation of it.
On the 29th November 2019 twenty eight year old terrorist Usman Khan was paid expenses to attend an event in Fishmongers’ Hall, near London Bridge. The event was to mark the Fifth anniversary of Learning Together for the reform of prison offenders. Cambridge graduate Jack Merritt was working with ex-offenders and prisoners via this scheme to help them.
The above picture shows Khan the terrorist sat in the centre in his padded coat. To the left in the hooded top one of the offenders being reformed (possibly Ford) and the men by the window are likely two other people who are reformed criminals who later follow behind the terrorist Khan on London Bridge. One of whom is Marc Conway. The larger man at the front on the right with short hair was stabbed by Khan. He is seen outside Fishmongers’ Hall with a foil survival blanket. Presumably his shirt removed for first aid treatment.
The image on the screen may inform you what was being discussed. Was it the River Thames relating to Fishmongers’ Hall or something pertinent to criminal behaviour?
The attendees split into two groups of about fifty. Each group was facilitated by two visitors from the USA. One was Prison reform activist and poet Bryonn Bain:
In November 2019, poet, playwright, prison activist and Emmy award winner Bryonn Bain will be traveling to the UK for a residency with the University of Cambridge and Whitemoor Prison in collaboration with the Learning Together Program. Named by Time Magazine one of the most important texts of the 20th century, 15 men incarcerated at the prison recently read The Autobiography of Malcolm X in a workshop with Cambridge sociologist Dr. Jeff Miley.
Some of the guests were reformed offenders who ‘I am assuming’ were involved in creative activities such as writing poems or stories. The group broke for a break and Khan returned a few minutes before 2pm. Now this is another assumption (it can be false) he returned with two kitchen knives and he is still wearing his coat with potentially another jacket/fake bomb belt underneath. We can see in the image he has a coat on in the morning session so he may have been sat all along with the knives in his pocket and a fake bomb belt.
The meeting rooms downstairs and upstairs were full of top judges, security professionals, senior police and reformed criminal guests. The later session was to be both groups joining together (a plenary) then adjourning for a celebratory cake said event attendee John Samuels QC President of Prisoners’ Education Trust; and a former Crown Court Judge and judicial member of the Parole Board.
Around 1.40 Jack Merritt and Saskia Jones had gone outside to smoke a cigarette. Khan was in the toilets taping a knife to his hand. On return from the break Khan still with his coat on starts to attack in the downstairs meeting room or near the stairway — perhaps he saw the elderly top judges and senior police officers as an easy target. In his attack he slashed, stabbed and killed Jack Merritt and then Saskia Jones. Saskia Jones was left slumped dying on the stairway. He may have pursued her up the stairs.
Amy Ludlow was shouting into her mobile phone “Police and ambulance, now”
Now this is where the story doesn’t make sense. Earlier in the morning Khan is in a room with senior judges, security experts and police. A bomb would have killed tens of people (over 100 were present as guests). One account says he was blocked from going up the stairs so instead he raced back down the stairs to exit the building. Darryn Frost says he originally passed the tusk to a comrade before racing upstairs in the hall to retrieve another. He said: “Along with others, I pursued the attacker, tusk in hand, on to the bridge”.
It suggests either this attack was a spur of the moment decision not pre-planned or he was hoping to attack the people in the other group or he targeted just the two people helping him from Learning Together. He was blocked going upstairs and blocked at the front doorway so he starts to attack the female reception staff.
James Ford is one of the first to intervene. A convicted murderer, he is out on day release. His first act is to perform CPR on Saskia Jones, one of the people stabbed by Khan. Sadly, it will be to no avail. Ford then pursues Khan.
Crilly fought him first with a wooden lectern and then a fire extinguisher, all the while believing he was wearing a live suicide belt. He said he acted on “instinct” and was screaming at Khan to “blow it”… calling his bluff.
Darryn Frost says “When we heard the noise from the floor below, a few of us rushed to the scene”. Gareth Evans appeared on VictoriaLive on BBC TV to say he ran down the stairs. He had been chatting with another reformed offender in the hallway outside the Learning Together conference at around 2pm, and heard shouting. He said his first instinct was to help the victims first but also to block Khan going upstairs to hurt others.
Mr Frost, 38, recalled seeing Khan confronting fellow delegate and former prisoner Steve Gallant with two knives.
“He was slashing at Steve, but Steve had a chair,” Mr Frost told the Guardian. “I pointed the tusk at Khan’s belly and the balance of power shifted in our favour. Khan turned and said to me: ‘I am not here for you. I am here for the police. I am waiting for the police.’”
But Darryn also says “He turned and spoke to me, then indicated he had an explosive device around his waist. At this point, the man next to me threw his chair at the attacker, who then started running towards him with knives raised above his head.” Perhaps the chair thrown was the lectern carried by Crilly.
At some point the Polish kitchen porter Lucasz Koczocik (who is also a first aider) enters the scene. He was cleaning glasses in the basement when he heard “loud screaming” and ran to the first floor where he saw Khan with two knives. He takes a seven foot wooden (or metal) pole off the wall. He prods at Khan’s chest who slashes back at him five times with his knives wounding him and stabbing him in his upper arm.
According to QC John Samuels only the reformed criminal guests (including Ford and Crilly) seem to know what to do. Though we now know from the 20/12/2019 that in fact Darryn Frost took both Narwahl tusks off the wall — not the offenders. It seems odd that a QC has such a faulty memory. He may have also misidentified Frost as an American or a reformed offender.
QC John Samuels explained:
“ Perhaps it was the heightened awareness of those who have spent so many years on the Wings of violent jails, which gave these former prisoners the training they needed to respond with such courage in a situation where most of us were mesmerised in shock.”
Near the exit Andy the building maintenance guy is stabbed. Jack Merritt and Saskia Jones are left with staff and remaining guests in shock trying to administer assistance to them in the meeting room or on the stairway as they are dying.
Eventually during the final moments of the terrorist incident the visitors, security experts, judges and police leave via the kitchen. Initially they are taken to an adjacent building (according to witness CA) to give statements or to a ‘survivors center’. Another report says they escape via minibus. There may have been different treatment for judges and senior police officers.
The slightly built door security men open the heavy front door after witnessing violent attacks on female reception staff. The terrorist Khan races outside with Crilly, Conway, Lucasz, and Andy the maintenance guy in pursuit. Lucasz and Andy stay with the security guards at the bollards as they have both been stabbed. Ford is no longer mentioned in any personal accounts.
Khan turns around on London Bridge to face his pursuers. During the pushing, slashing, fire extinguisher spraying and shouting he says he is waiting for the police. He has no intention of running away. He wants to be shot as a terrorist. Crilly sprays the fire extinguisher in the eyes of Khan while Darryn prods him with the tusk to push him away. The ginger haired guy in the security footage is now apparently Darryn Frost, of London, who works at the Ministry of Justice communications department. Another reformed offender, Marc Conway or the other so-called kitchen worker referred to as Mohammed in various newspapers manoeuvres behind Khan and drags him to the ground.
The other may be the man referred to as Mohammed in other articles who worked in the kitchens of a nearby restaurant. The Daily Mail suggests the man on the right is Conway. The man on the left would be so-called Mohammed.
The problem with this repeated newspaper account is so-called Mohammed in the purple jumper was also a guest at Fishmongers’ Hall. He was also likely a reformed prisoner. The giveaway is the white ID tag around the neck for so-called Mohammed above. Marc Conway also has the same Fishmongers’ Hall white ID tag.
Other passersby witness the event and start to congregate to join in. One an undercover transport police officer steps on Khan’s arm to release one knife which he takes away. Another tour guide first says he kicks Khan in the head but later says he stood on Khan’s wrist to release a knife, then retreats. But the ginger haired guy Darryn Frost, of London, who works at the Ministry of Justice communications department stays on top of Khan the terrorist until the armed police arrive.
The tour guide says one knife was taped to Khan’s hand. The armed police pull Darryn Frost off the terrorist. Meanwhile Crilly and the others have retreated back towards the bollards where the security guards where two other guests, the admin guy Adam and the polish porter are stood. Crilly is shouting ‘shoot him he’s got a bomb’. Or words to that affect.
The armed police officers back away — one shouts ‘bomb’ another fires a shot into Khan then another fires. It is shoot to kill.
His fake bomb turns out to be what looks like a padded jacket in online image. Though there was also a suspect bomb belt.
The false mass media story kicks in. It tells us the hero was a polish chef who fights the terrorist with a Narwahl tusk and the story runs away. Perhaps having reformed criminals as heroes was too big a step for the media.
It takes several days into December for the actual story to start to emerge. First the the Clerk of Fishmongers’ Hall Commodore Toby Williamson gives a totally factual account — omitting that two of the pursuers were Crilly and Frost. He does mention Lucasz the polish kitchen porter and Andy the maintenance man. He doesn’t mention Conway or the other character newspapers call Mohammed. We later learn the 20/12/2019 the man who looks like he has ginger hair and beard is South African Darryn Frost who says he took both tusks off the wall. We still don’t know who dragged Khan to the ground — possibly Marc Conway or the man referred to as Mohammed who supposedly according to newspapers worked in the kitchens of another restaurant washing dishes, like Lucasz another kitchen porter. But who was actually a reformed offender.
Darryn also seems to have just started to grow a beard. I’m surprised the video picked it up.
The polish kitchen porter Lucasz tells his factual story then says he wants to be left alone.
The former prisoner Crilly appears on TV on the 12/12/2019 as the general election is ending with voters going to the polls.
Jack Merritt’s dad has already said he doesn’t want his son to be used in a political campaign. The BBC and other media ignore this request.
James Ford is transferred from an open prison to a secure prison so that he cannot be contacted by the media about his part in the story. He has now been cut out of the story entirely. Initially it seemed he was the most likely fit to the man on the bridge with the Narwahl tusk because he was the only reforming offender with ginger hair and the report on the 1/12/2019:
“A convicted murderer was among members of the public who tackled the London Bridge terrorist after his deadly knife attack, it has been revealed.”
Crilly divulges that the room was full of senior security experts, police and judges (like John Samuels QC). The name of one of the two Americans present is still unknown. One is the poet Bryonn Bain. Possibly the other ‘American’ is the South African Darryn Frost.
Bullet holes were found in a nearby bus. Later forensic expert, Philip Boyce, of forensic services company Forensic Equity, said a ricocheting bullet could have entered through the front window and glanced off the ceiling of the bus before going out through the back. A bullet that made potentially four or more impacts — including travelling through the terrorists body before falling to the ground behind the bus (I assume).
The information on the number of shots fired by the armed police is contradictory. Some reports say two some three. One report says he was ‘repeatedly’ shot in his chest and stomach by the armed police.
Event attendee CA says “ we start hearing gunshots: four shots, then two.”
Questions:
Were the knives used by the terrorist in an open cabinet?
The most famous City fishmonger is Sir William Walworth, who, as Lord Mayor of London in 1381, helped bring the Peasants’ Revolt to an end by stabbing the rebel Wat Tyler to death at Smithfield in the presence of King Richard II. The dagger in Fishmongers’ Hall has the legend that it was the one used. Did the terrorist take the dagger. It was suggested on Twitter they were usually locked away in a cabinet.
Did some provocation occur during the morning session?
The terrorist went off for his break, possibly a smoke — but had returned in a different angry mood. Why was that? He kept his coat on during the whole morning session. He looks isolated without a drink as others have on the table. He has a knife taped to his one hand.
Why would a terrorist take a fake bomb?
Khan had the opportunity to create one of the biggest global terrorist incidents in the World. He could have killed or wounded the UK’s top judges, security and police but instead he chooses to attack the two people who were helping him. Was the bomb he made faulty or simply fake as a means to terrorise?
Why did South African Darryn Frost
-take so long to come forward?
-when discovered lock his twitter account and remove all images, posts of himself from the Internet apart from his Facebook account picture. He also says he “omitted ..many details” in his account of the incident?
Why/how did Darryn Frost
pass by Saskia Jones lying on the stairs twice with two Narwahl tusks?
Why did American poet Bryonn Bain
- remove his web site and put it up for sale?
He was handed the tusk by Darryn — why did he wait for Darryn to run upstairs and get another one and not pursue Khan immediately himself. He also lagged behind and only shows up very late to the bridge scene. Did Bryonn get the first or second tusk upstairs not Darryn?
By chance why did 3 of the heroes seem to have dyed hair:
- Marc Conway seems to have dyed black hair
- Crilly seems to have dyed white hair
- Frost seems to have dyed ginger hair and beard in the CCTV images — which appears more blonde in recent images.
Attendee/witness
Coralie — wrongly believed there were 3 terrorists. She/he may have seen two people chasing Khan.
Ruth Armstrong — set up Learning Together in 2014 from the Faculty of Law and Institute of Criminology, with Amy.
Amy Ludlow — phones the police
Saskia Jones — victim
Jack Merritt — victim
Bryonn Bain — a US guest (poet)
Marc Conway — a policy officer at the Prison Reform Trust (reformed offender)
John Crilly — ex offender
James Ford — prisoner on day release
QC John Samuels
Darryn Frost — Ministry of Justice communications department
Mohammed — reformed offender or ?kitchen porter
Lucasz — kitchen porter
C.A. male.
100 guests and 50 staff were in attendance.
Info about readers of this article:
There seems to be a large number of readers of this article who are registered on a new dating site. It seems an unusual thing to share about yourself to get a date. Alternatively, this dating site is the new secret communication medium for those involved in this operation.
Some personal thoughts
Mentalist Derren Brown during ‘the Heist’ was able to get ordinary people to commit a crime using a gun stimulated by a single poster with the words “Do it” and music playing loud. Why would the training use such an obscure symbol/map to assist prisoner learning?
What does this symbol mean looked at by Khan?
Why does Khan say repeatedly “I am waiting for the police”?
In 2023 when I asked Bing Chat it believed it represented a snake symbolic of good and evil.
By chance, a South African mentalist named Peel was in London around this time.
