Edward Little intended to purchase a firearm to murder a Christian minister and her camera crew. When he was apprehended, he was traveling to London in a taxi with thousands of pounds in cash.
A 21-year-old man admitted to planning a firearms attack at Speakers’ Corner in Hyde Park, London.
Edward Little, from Brighton, allegedly intended to purchase a firearm to murder a Christian evangelist and her camera crew at Speakers’ Corner, along with any police or soldiers in the area at the time.
He had researched various firearms and their capabilities and arranged to purchase one for £5,000; he was traveling to London in a taxi with thousands of pounds in cash when he was stopped and apprehended on September 23, 2017.
Earlier this year, he denied planning terrorist acts, but on Friday he changed his plea and admitted the allegation via video link from Belmarsh prison at the Old Bailey in central London.
According to the prosecution, Little researched targets such as the Christian evangelist Hatun Tash, military figures, and Metropolitan Police officers.
However, defense attorney Tom Godfrey stated that Little only admitted to targeting the preacher.
On the day of the botched scheme, he paid £300 for a cab to Lewisham, south London, the court heard.
He requested a mosque stop, but there were none along the road, so he prayed in the car.
On one of the phones he was detained with, police discovered a chat using encryption.
It showed him using the alias “Abdullah” and exchanging communications about religion, Iraq, and “kuffar” – a derogatory term for non-Muslims.
“Extremely shocking” criminal history
When given a YouTube image of the preacher he targeted, Little went violent.
On 28 September of last year, he admitted assaulting a police officer at the Newbury Police Station and was sentenced to forty weeks in prison, which was reduced to eight months on appeal.
A judge described his “absolutely shocking” criminal record at an earlier hearing.
It included 14 robberies, knife possession, and drug distribution offenses extending back to 2017.
Little was ordered to remain in detention until his sentencing on July 21.
