Darren Osborne, pictured in a court sketch from a previous hearing, faces murder and attempted murder charges
The man accused of carrying out the Finsbury Park terror attack has pleaded not guilty to murder and attempted murder.
Darren Osborne, 47, is accused of crashing a £80-a-day rented Citroen van into a group of worshippers near the north London mosque in June.
Makram Ali, a 51-year-old grandfather-of-two, was killed in the incident and at least eight others were injured.
Jobless father-of-four Osborne is alleged to have been motivated by ‘extreme political views’.
Although the few friends he had in Cardiff said they thought he had ‘little interest’ in politics.
He charged with the murder of Mr Ali and the attempted murder of others in the attack in Finsbury Park on June 19.
The area was busy with worshippers attending Ramadan night prayers at the nearby mosque on the night of the attack.
Mr Ali’s family said in a statement: ‘Our father was a quiet gentle man, he didn’t get involved in political or social discussion, he instead took comfort and enjoyment spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren and he was always ready to make a funny joke when you least expected.
‘We are distressed about what happened. We know that he had some form of collapse because of his weak leg, a condition he suffers from, before recovering, sitting up and expressing a wish to return home only to then become a victim of this horrific incident.
‘An incident made only more tragic as he had only just completed his evening prayers, something he did regularly.
‘He took great comfort in the feelings of peace his prayers provided.’
Born in Singapore, Osborne went to primary school in Milton Keynes before moving to Weston-Super-Mare. He later moved to Cardiff with his former partner.
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