The prosecution case in the trial of two men accused of murdering soldier Lee Rigby outside Woolwich Barracks is due to open today
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Lee Rigby court case
3:28 pm
Prosecutor Richard Whittam QC has finished his opening speech to the jury.
The judge Mr Justice Sweeney told the jurors to come back to court on Monday for a 12pm start.
3:21 pm
Adebolajo later told officers: "I am a Muslim extremist, this may be the only chance you meet one.
"Your people have gone to Afghanistan and raped and killed our women. I am seeking retribution I wouldn't stoop so low as to rape and kill women.
"I thank the person who shot me, because it is what Allah would have wanted."
Adebolajo added: "I love Allah more than my children."
At hospital he told doctors he did not want to be touched by any women. He made no reply to being arrested on suspicion of murder.
The following day Adebolajo told another officer: "My intention was never to harm civilians.
"There were women and children around. My intention was to hurt military only."
He added: "The reason that we are fighting is because we believe in an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
"We hope that one day Great Britain will replace those corrupt politicians with men, or women, who truly care about the security of their citizens by withdrawing from affairs of Muslims, including their lands."
3:13 pm
The jury were shown pictures of the bloodstained knives, the machete and the rusty gun wielded by the killers.
Further photographs showed the damage to the Vauxhall Tigra and its interior contents, including the box of knives bought from Argos and a knife sharpener.
In test-firing the gun, a Dutch calibre 9.4mm gun, did not work until the parts had been oiled and lubricated, the court heard.
3:06 pm
Three members of the Specialist Firearms Command were instructed to go straight to the scene in their BMW X5.
They were armed with Glock 17 self-loading pistols, Tasers and a Heckler and Koch MP5 carbine, the court heard.
Adebolajo by one officer as he ran at the car and another officer shot Adebowale as he ran towards then holding a rusty gun, the court heard.
The driver D49 then got out and used her Taser on Adebolajo.
Adebolajo, who had suffered a gunshot wound to his upper left bicep, told paramedics: "Please let me lay here. I don't want anyone to die. I just want the soldiers out of my country."
He added: "Your government is all wrong. I did it for my God. I wish the bullets had killed me so I can join my friends and family."
As he was lifted on to a trolley he said: "I want to thank the person who shot me."
When one of the paramedics tended to the wound in his arm, he said: "Allah gave me this arm and you can do what you want with it."
Adebolajo then claimed that British soldiers deserved to die for killing and raping women in his land.
"Adebolajo referred to living in peace under Sharia Law and constantly referred to the Muslim faith and to his hatred for Christianity and British soldiers," said Mr Whittam.
3:03 pm
In the video Adebolajo said: 'The only reason we're doing this is Muslims are dying daily by British soldiers and this is one of those soldiers so an eye for an eye.
"We will never stop fighting you until you leave us alone.
"When you drop a bomb do you think it picks one person to kill or wipes out a whole family.
"We must fight - an eye for an eye a tooth for a tooth.
"I apologise that women had to see this today but in our land they see worse every day.
"David Cameron will be caught in the street.
"Get rid of the troops bring them back. Leave our lands."
2:56 pm
The court heard that Adebolajo handed a letter containing religious references to Ms Donnelly Martin.
It said: "Fighting Allah's enemies is an obligation", and went on: "Do not spend your days in endless discussion with the cowardly and foolish.
"It means that it will delay your meeting Allah's enemies on the battlefield. Sometimes the cowardly and foolish can be those dearest to you. So be prepared to turn away from them."
The handwritten note suggested "carnage reaching your town" was "simply retaliation for your oppression in our towns".
It said when the "heat of battle" came, "it is unlikely that any of your so-called politicians will be caught up in the the crossfire, so I suggest that you remove them."
The letter continued: "Muslims will trade with you on fair terms. Understand that the days of your international armed robbery are drawing to a close."
2:45 pm
In footage played to the jury, Adebolajo is heard telling bystanders: "soldiers go to our land and kill our people - so an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth."
He added: "An eye for an eye - you will never be safe until you leave us alone."
Mr Whittam said that killing to make a political point is still murder.
"To seek out and kill political opponents on the grounds that you say that they have oppressed your countrymen or people of your religion is still murder.
"Killing to make a political point or to frighten the public to make a political point, or to frighten the public to put pressure on the Government, or as an expression of anger, is murder and remains murder whether the Government is in question is a good one, a bad one, or a dreadful.
"Equally there is no defence of moral justification ofr killing just as there is no defence of religious justification.
"An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth suggests revenge or retaliation, and in the context of this case, murder."
Mr Whittam said that the law of self defence was "not a law of counter attack or retaliation."
2:32 pm
Mr Whittam explained how lorry driver Samuel Williams used his white Volvo to block the sight of Lee Rigby's body from members of the public.
Another witness saw Adebowale waving a gun in the air as Adebolajo talked to witnesses at the scene.
Some members of the public used their mobile phones to record Adebolajo speaking to a crowd, the court heard.
'You can see the blood on his hands,' said Mr Whittam, as the footage was shown to the jury.
1:48 pm
Video footage of soldier Lee Rigby being mown down by a car and his alleged murderers dragging his body into the middle of the road was shown to the jury today.
There were gasps in oak-panelled Court Two of the Old Bailey as CCTV clips were played, and relatives of the fusilier left the room in tears.
The first piece of footage showed a Vauxhall Tigra, that prosecutors claim was being driven by Adebolajo, swerve across Artillery Place in Woolwich, south east London, and mow down the fusilier.
Other footage showed the two men dragging his body into the road.
1:02 pm
The Lee Rigby murder trial has now adjourned for lunch until 2pm.
Both defendants were taken down to the cells. Adebolajo was clutching a Quran.
12:58 pm
Witness Tina Nimmo, who had been in a car with her daughter and her grandchild, approached the attackers.
"She does not know why she got out of the car but she could see other people around and she did not want them to get hurt, especially as she saw that one of the men had a gun." said Mr Whittam.
"She saw the men drag Lee Rigby into the road."
She warned others 'Go back, he's got a gun, go back' but many of them ignored her and came to watch, the court heard.
Jurors were then shown CCTV of the killers dragging Lee Rigby’s body into the road after the attack.
12:45 pm
Gary Perkins described how Adebolajo sawed at the neck of Lee Rigby while Adebowale tried to cut off parts of the body.
"He described the actions as being like a butcher attacking a joint of meat," said Mr Whittam.
"He did not see Lee Rigby move and thought that he was already dead. He could not believe what he was seeing ."
His colleague Gill Hucks described it as a "horrific frenzied attack" and did not see Lee Rigby move or make a sound throughout.
12:43 pm
Amanda Bailey was driving down the hill after an appointment at her son's school when the Tigra cut across in front of her and accelerate into Lee Rigby.
She stopped her car across the road and noticed that his eyes were open but 'frozen'. "He wasn't moving or making any noise," said Mr Whittam.
"He was lying face up, with his legs pointing away from the bonnet. She tried to dial 999 but in her angst she dialled 9999."
Adebolajo then got out of the car and knelt down by Lee Rigby to take hold of his hair.
He then repeatedly hacked at the right side of his neck just below the jawline with 'considerable force', said Mr Whittam.
Amanda Bailey described him bringing his hand up into the air each time before he delivered a blow with the machete.
She later told police: "I was so shocked that all I could do was sit there and stare at what was happening. I couldn't believe what was going on.
"He was determined and he wasn't going to stop. He didn't care."
After what "felt like a lifetime" she drove into John Wilson Street where she stopped to warn a group of schoolchildren away from the area, jurors were told.
12:04 pm
The jury are shown CCTV stills and footage of the movements of the attackers in the lead-up to the attack.
Adebolajo and Adebowale are shown travelling in the Vauxhall Tigra towards Woolwich Barracks.
Mr Whittam tells the jury they will see CCTV footage of the moment Lee Rigby was hit by the killers’ car.
Lee Rigby was wearing a 'Help for Heroes' hooded sweatshirt and carrying an army day sack when he travelled from Tower Gateway to Woolwich Arsenal by the Docklands Lightlands Railway.
He then walked along Wellington Street to Artillery Place before heading towards a shop on the other side of the road.
The jury watched in silence as CCTV footage was shown of the car hitting Lee Rigby as he crossed the road.
It shows the car veering sharply before hitting Lee Rigby from behind, throwing him on to the bonnet.
"Mercifully he appears to have been rendered unconscious by the impact," said Mr Whittam.
The car then hit a roadside stanchion and came to a stop.
"What unfolded thereafter was shocking to those who observed it," said Mr Whittam.
"What is clear is that Michael Adebolajo and Michael Adebowale were acting together. It was a joint attack on Lee Rigby with a common purpose.
"They joined in together attacking Lee Rigby and together they dragged his body into the middle of the road."
The impact was witnessed by shopkeeper Ibrahim Elidemir and Saraj Miah, who described the car hitting Lee Rigby at a 'terrible speed', the court heard.
Mr Whittam said: "The driver got out with a ''chopper'' in his hand. The passenger got out with a knife in each hand.
"He [Mr Miah] saw the driver attacking the throat of Lee Rigby with the chopper and the passenger stabbing him to the body."
Mr Miah told the two men "Don't kill him" but the passenger took out a gun and aimed it at him.
11:38 am
Adebolajo bought a set of five kitchen knives and knife sharpener from Argos in Lewisham the day before the killing, the jury heard.
On the morning of 22 May Adebolajo filled up the car at a petrol station at Tesco but claimed he had no money to pay and offered a white mobile phone in exchange.
When asked what else he had in his pockets he pulled out a copy of the Qu'ran - but said he did not want to leave that with the shop assistant.
He then drove towards Adebowale's home to pick him up, the court heard.
At 1pm the car was seen leaving Adebolajo's home and heading towards Woolwich.
11:42 am
Jurors were told that both men have admitted possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.
Mr Whittam told the court the defendants had been together for five hours before the attack and added "it was clear" there had been an agreement to attack the police when they arrived.
He said: "It was a joint attack; Michael Adebolajo got very close indeed to the driver's side of the police vehicle and had he not been shot it is difficult to think that he would not have succeeded in killing a police officer."
The jury was shown images including maps indicating where Adebolajo and Adebowale each lived, and an aerial photograph of the barracks.
Mr Whittam then explained the movements of the defendants on the day Fusilier Rigby died.
Adebowale last saw his father on May 19 and they arranged to meet the following day but Adebowale failed to show up at Charing Cross station, the court heard.
Mr Whittam added: "The next time his father was to see him was when he watched the news on May 22."
11:33 am
The jury has heard that they also both conspired to kill a police officer when the force arrived.
They waited at the scene and kept the blood-stained knife.
11:23 am
The court heard Lee Rigby was born on 4 July 1987 and joined the army in July 2006.
After completing his infantry training he was selected to be a member of the Corps of Drums with the 2nd Battalion, the Royal Regiment of Fusilier.
Mr Whittam told the jury: 'You may have heard him referred to as Drummer Rigby - that reflects the traditional role of Fusiliers.'
Lee Rigby was first posted to Cyprus before travelling with the machine gun platoon in Jordan.
In 2008 he returned to London and was an 'integral member of the Corps of Drums' before being deployed to Helmand Province in Aghanistan.
After his return to the UK he moved to Germany as part of the Small Scale Contingency Battle Group before taking a recruiting post based at the Barracks in Woolwich. As part of his duties he assisted at regimental HQ at the Tower of London.
Both Michael Adebolajo, 28, and Adebowale, 22, are British citizens.
Adebowale, known by his parents as Tobi, was brought up in the Christian faith and converted to Islam when he was 17, adopting the name Ismael.
11:19 am
"Michael Adebolajo made a serious and almost successful attempt to decapitate him with multiple blows to his neck made with the meat clever," said prosecutor Richard Whittam QC.
"At the same time as Michael Adebolajo used the meat cleaver, Michael Adebowale was using a knife to stab and cut at Lee Rigby's body.
"Both men then dragged Lee Rigby's body into the middle of the road. They wanted the members of the public present to see the consequence of their barbarous acts.
"They had committed a cowardly and callous murder by deliberately attacking an unarmed man in civilian clothes from behind using a vehicle as a weapon and then they murdered him and mutilated his body with a meat cleaver and knives.
"Such heinous behaviour is in distinct contrast to the bravery and decency shown by some of the members of the public present."
Many attempted to give first aid and one woman went to Lee Rigby's lifeless body and stroked him "to provide some comfort and humanity", the court heard.
Another woman tried to engage Adebolajo in conversation even though his hands were covered in blood and he was still carrying a meat cleaver.
11:10 am
Prosecutor Richard Whittam QC begins his opening speech to the jury.
"This case involves the alleged murder of Lee Rigby. The circumstances of his death are shocking.
"It is important that you do not let emotion or sympathy affect your judgement in this case.
"The prosecution seeks only true verdicts on the evidence as you find it to be, nothing more and nothing less.
'Shortly after 2pm on Wednesday 22 May in Artillery Place in the Royal Borough of Greenwich two men drove a Vauxhall Tigra car straight at Fusilier Lee Rigby as he walked across the road.
"When the car struck him it was travelling at something like 30-40 miles per hour. From the eyewitness accounts it appears that Lee Rigby was rendered unconscious by that deliberate act.
"The car carried him from the road onto the pavement. There is no evidence to suggest that the driver of the Tigra braked at any stage and it struck a stanchion of the road sign with great force.
"Such was the damage to the vehicle caused by the impact that it was difficult for the front seat passenger to open his door.
"Both men alighted from the Tigra. They were clearly acting together with a common purpose. Unlike the initial impression formed by some members of the public that this was an accident, it was not.
"They were armed with a meat cleaver and knives. They also had a firearm, a revolver, with them. They both attacked the motionless body of Lee Rigby."
10:56 am
The judge Mr Justice Sweeney told the jury not to allow themselves to be influenced by media reports or any comments on the internet.
'You must not allow yourselves to be influenced by any demonstrations outside the court,' he added.
He said they should avoid talking to anyone else about the case - including by text or twitter.
The judge added that they had a 'duty of confidentiality' not to disclose details of their discussions in the jury room.
10:38 am
Here are family members and loved ones of soldier Lee Rigby arriving at the Old Bailey this morning.
Among them are Ian Rigby's stepfather (left), his sister Sara McClure (centre) and his mother Lyn Rigby (second from right)..
Michael Adebolajo and Michael Adebowale are standing trial today following the conclusion of legal submissions.
10:33 am
Twelve members of the jury have been selected for the start of the trial of two men for the murder of Fusilier Lee Rigby.
Michael Adebowale, 22, and Michael Adebolajo, 28, sat in the dock of court two of the Old Bailey while the clerk read out the names of the jurors.
Both confirmed they understood that they could object to any of the jurors.
The jurors then began taking the oath in turn.
10:20 am
The jury selection process began yesterday in wood-lined Court Two at the Old Bailey, where potential jurors were each asked four questions to determine their ability to try the case.
Fourteen possible jurors were selected from a larger pool, and it is expected that the 12 final jurors will be selected on Friday, before the prosecution case opens.
The potential jurors were asked:
:: Have you or any person with whom you have regular and close personal contact been in the vicinity of a terrorist incident?
:: Are you or any person with whom you have regular and close personal contact employed or have been employed by the Armed Forces, Police Force, Prison Service, Security Services or the Crown Prosecution Service?
:: Is there any reason arising from your beliefs, past or present occupation or any other matter that you feel may inhibit the essential requirement to return true verdicts according to the evidence in this trial? In particular do you or any member of your family or a relative or close friend hold political or religious views of such strength that they might materially influence your consideration of this case?
:: Is there some other compelling reason requiring you to be excused?
Mr Justice Sweeney told them: "It is an essential part of a fair trial that the jurors who try the case must have no connection with it whether direct or indirect, and must be able to reach true verdicts based on the evidence rather than on any pre-conceived ideas, beliefs or prejudices."
10:17 am
The prosecution case in the trial of two men accused of murdering soldier Lee Rigby is due to open today.
Michael Adebolajo, 28, and Michael Adebowale, 22, are charged with killing the Fusilier as he walked back to Woolwich Barracks in south-east London on May 22.
They are also each accused of attempting to murder a police officer on the same day, and conspiracy to murder a police officer on or before that day.
Father-of-one Fusilier Rigby, 25, from Middleton, Greater Manchester, died of multiple cut and stab wounds when he was attacked as he returned to the barracks after spending the day at the Tower of London.
Adebolajo, from Romford in Essex, has asked to be known as Mujaahid Abu Hamza in court, while Adebowale, from Greenwich, south-east London, has asked to be called Ismail Ibn Abdullah.
Mirror.co.uk http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/
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