London, June 10: Had the Pakistani-origin London Bridge attacker succeeded in hiring a 7.5 tonne truck, the number of casualties in the carnage would have been much higher, the British media reported today. Ringleader Khuram Shazad Butt’s efforts to hire the bigger truck failed when his payment was declined, the BBC reported.
27-year-old Butt had ganged up with two other accomplices to carry out the terror attack June 3 that killed eight persons and injured nearly 50. Commander Dean Haydon of Scotland Yard’s counter- terrorism command said: “Concerningly, Butt had earlier attempted to hire a 7.5-tonne lorry that same morning. When he did not provide payment details, the rental did not go ahead. The effects could have been even worse”.
The aim of the attackers seems to have been to replicate the attack in Nice, the officer said.
Press Trust of India
