British man who took four hostage inside Texas synagogue was investigated as possible terrorist in late 2020: report
KATE FELDMAN
The man who took four people hostage in a Texas synagogue on Saturday was investigated more than a year ago by a British counterintelligence agency, which reportedly concluded he posed no threat.
The United Kingdom’s security agency, MI5, investigated Malik Faisal Akram, a 44-year-old British national, as a “possible Islamist terrorist threat” in the second half of 2020 and cleared him, saying there was “no reason to prevent him from traveling abroad,” the Guardian reported Tuesday.
On Saturday, Akram held four people hostage inside Beth Israel Congregation in Colleyville, Texas, while demanding the release of a Pakistani woman serving an 86-year sentence for shooting at U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan in 2008.
Malik Faisal Akram
Malik Faisal Akram (Handout/)
Akram referred to the woman, neuroscientist Aafia Siddiqui, as his “sister.” But John Floyd, Siddiqui’s lawyer, told the Daily News Sunday that Akram has “no connection with the family whatsoever” and “he has also no connection to the Free Aafia movement inside the U.S.”
Akram’s family said Sunday that he was “suffering from mental health issues.”
In 2001, Akram was banned from Blackburn Magistrates Court, the local legal system, after telling a court usher that he wished he had been on one of the planes hijacked on 9/11, according to the Guardian.
An aerial view of police standing in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue.
An aerial view of police standing in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue. (Brandon Wade/)
All four hostages were freed unharmed Saturday, including the final three after Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker threw a chair at Akram and ran for the exit.
Akram was dead when agents breached the temple in Colleyville, in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
Police stand in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas. A man held hostages for more than 10 hours Saturday inside the temple. The hostages were able to escape and the hostage-taker was killed. FBI Special Agent in Charge Matt DeSarno said a team would investigate "the shooting incident."
Law enforcement process the scene in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Police stand in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue, Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Police stand in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Colleyville police Chief Michael Miller addresses reporters in a nearby parking lot after the conclusion of a SWAT operation at Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas. All four people taken hostage inside the synagogue during a morning service were safe Saturday night after an hours-long standoff, authorities said.
Colleyville police Chief Michael Miller, center in blue jacket, shakes hands with fellow law enforcement officers after addressing reporters after the conclusion of a SWAT operation at Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Law enforcement officials gather at a local school near the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Law enforcement officials block Pleasant Run Rd. near Congregation Beth Israel synagogue where a man took hostages during services on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Shortly after 5 p.m., local time, authorities escort a hostage out of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue in Colleyville, Texas, Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022. Police said the man was not hurt and would be reunited with his family.
Law enforcement officials gather at Colleyville Elementary School near the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas. Authorities said a man took hostages Saturday during services at the synagogue where the suspect could be heard ranting in a livestream and demanding the release of a Pakistani neuroscientist who was convicted of trying to kill U.S. Army officers in Afghanistan.
A law enforcement official stands patrol on the main road leading to Congregation Beth Israel synagogue where a man had held hostages for hours on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Law enforcement teams stage near Congregation Beth Israel while conducting SWAT operations in Colleyville, Texas on Saturday afternoon, Jan. 15, 2022.
Law enforcement teams stage near Congregation Beth Israel while conducting SWAT operations on Pleasant Run Rd. on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas. Authorities said a man took hostages Saturday during services at the Texas synagogue.
Emergency responders gather at Colleyville Elementary School near Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas. Authorities said a man took hostages Saturday during services at the Texas synagogue where the suspect could be heard ranting in a livestream and demanding the release of a Pakistani neuroscientist who was convicted of trying to kill U.S. Army officers in Afghanistan.
A Texas state trooper blocks traffic on a road leading to a Colleyville, Texas synagogue where a man apparently took hostages on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022.
Both President Biden and British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss have condemned the hostage-taking as terrorism.
The FBI has said Akram acted alone, but British police announced Sunday that two teenagers in South Manchester had been taken into custody for questioning by counterterrorism officers. They have not been publicly identified, and their connections to Akram were unclear.
