Man 'doesn't resent police' for synagogue shooting

Yoni Finlay was "doing a lot better", said his former wife

A man hit by a bullet as police attempted to shoot the Manchester synagogue attacker does not resent officers injuring him, his ex-wife has said.

Yoni Finlay, 39, was trying to prevent Jihad Al-Shamie, 35, from getting into the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation building in Crumpsall on Thursday when the father-of-four was hit by a live round.

Naomi Finlay said: "From the perspective of what's happened to Yoni... no one's resentful, no one's apportioning any blame."

Melvin Cravitz, 66, was killed in the attack and 53-year-old Adrian Daulby, who was with Mr Finlay trying to stop Al-Shamie from getting in, died after being hit by a police bullet.

Mr Finlay, who is currently in hospital and under armed guard, went through seven hours of surgery on Thursday.

Mrs Finlay said the bullet had "ricocheted" inside his body and caused injuries to his lungs, diaphragm, and stomach.

She said he had had "some of his bowel removed [and] his kidney fixed" and was "doing a lot better".

"He looks better. He feels better. He's out of intensive care," the 39-year-old added.

"He's in pain, obviously, but I think for him and anyone who's been injured or involved in any of that terrible day, I think it's the emotional toll which is going to take a lot longer to recover from."

Mrs Finlay said she and her family considered her ex-husband "a hero"

Police fired at Al-Shamie as he tried to get into the building, then shot him again as he attempted to get back up off the ground.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is investigating the Greater Manchester Police (GMP) response to the incident, which has been treated as a terrorist attack.

Mrs Finlay, who visited her ex-husband on Thursday and Saturday, said it was "for the police to decide if there's any wrongdoing or accountability that needs to be taken".

GMP said it could not comment while the IOPC investigation was ongoing.

Melvin Cravitz and Adrian Daulby both died in the attack

Mrs Finlay said there had been a huge show of support from friends and the public since the attack.

"I've probably had close to a thousand calls and messages," she said.

"I think [it] shows what people think of him and how much everyone likes him and admires him."

Mrs Finlay said Mr Finlay had told her "he did what anyone else would have done".

But she said her ex-husband was "a hero".

"And everybody there was a hero. He definitely is. And the kids know he's their hero."

She said he was "being very humble about it," adding: "And he just says he was just focused on keeping everyone in there safe and keeping him out."

An 18-year-old woman and a 43-year-old man who were arrested on the day of the attack have been released and will face no further action, GMP said.

Four other people who were arrested on suspicion of terror offences remain in custody.

'Threats'

Mrs Finlay said she had not been surprised by Thursday's attack, saying she and her family had suffered antisemitic abuse earlier in the year.

In an email seen by the BBC, GMP wrote to Mrs Finlay in July to say a crime of religiously aggravated public order had been recorded.

Mrs Finlay said: "Threats of physical violence against my children were made.

"Initially, the response was very quick. They interviewed the kids.

"They questioned the person who made the threats, but then it fizzled out.

"Nothing was done. I chased the police, you know, asking are we going to even get an apology or is it going to be on his criminal record? What's going to happen?

"Unfortunately, we were never contacted again, and no action was taken, even though I did try my best.

"So that feels quite disappointing. And it feels disappointing in the sense that people know that they can say stuff and threaten us and do things to us, and it's going to go untouched and unquestioned and unpunished.

She added: "And that's why I think what happened on Thursday was so unsurprising."

In response to Mrs Finlay's complaint, GMP said the suspect had been 14, and that "restorative justice", including "education and an apology to the victim" was deemed the best course of action because "the threshold for criminal prosecution would not be met".

In other developments:

• Volunteer security guard Ivor Rosenberg, who confronted Al-Shamie before the attack, has told the BBC he believes he would have been killed had he been armed with a gun

• The funeral of Adrian Daulby was held earlier. Mourners heard he was a "quiet man" who became a "hero"

• A neighbour of the attacker revealed she called police with concerns about activity at his home during the coronavirus pandemic