Terrorism evidence not part of Bournemouth e-scooter inquest, coroner says

Lawangeen Abdulrahimzai stabbed 21-year-old Tom Roberts in Bournemouth in March 2022

Whether a man who murdered a stranger in a row over an e-scooter was involved in terrorism will not be considered as part of his victim's inquest.

Afghan asylum seeker Lawangeen Abdulrahimzai stabbed 21-year-old Tom Roberts in Bournemouth in March 2022.

Dorset Coroner's Court previously heard the Home Office was told Abdulrahimzai was "susceptible to terrorism" in 2021.

Coroner Rachael Griffin said this evidence would not be part of Mr Roberts' inquest.

The decision comes after the Home Office's Prevent anti-terrorism programme conducted a review into Abdulrahimzai, as well as a peer review of the report outcomes.

Ms Griffin said she considered the reviews were not relevant as Mr Roberts' death "was not terrorist-related" and so it fell "out of scope" of his inquest.

She said: "The matters of which that Prevent review goes into are not relevant to this inquest. I am content they do not assist this coronial investigation into Tom's death."

Tom Roberts was stabbed to death in an argument over an e-scooter

Abdulrahimzai was given a life sentence in January with a minimum term of 29 years for murdering Mr Roberts in the Horseshoe Common area of Bournemouth.

His trial heard that Mr Roberts was attacked while acting as a "peacemaker" in an argument between the killer and his friend James Medway.

Abdulrahimzai, who arrived in the UK in December 2019, told the authorities at the time of his arrest that he was 14 when he arrived in the country, before it was determined by the courts he had been 18.

It also emerged that he had been given a 20-year prison term in his absence for murdering two people with a Kalashnikov assault rifle in Serbia.

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Ms Griffin told the court Mr Roberts' family had raised concerns over Abdulrahimzai's entry into the UK and the fact he had been reported to police for being in possession of a knife two days before the victim's death.

She confirmed a previous review of the Home Office's role in processing his immigration status had been completed, but would be restricted during inquest proceedings as it could reveal procedures used when processing applicants.

Regarding the knife incident, Ms Griffin said Dorset Police referred itself to the Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC) and was directed to carry out a review.

The coroner's court heard this review found there had been "no threat made and there was no immediate risk of his possession of the bladed article".

Ms Griffin added the review found that there was "no act or omission that was contributory to Tom's death".

Proceedings have been adjourned for a pre-inquest review on 8 March.

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