How London Bridge terror ringleader made mystery calls with a man, 33, in the hours before rampage 

The mastermind of the London Bridge terror cell repeatedly communicated with a 33-year-old man from East London in the hours before the deadly rampage, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

Irfan Saeed, who lives in a council flat in Newham, was in contact with killer Khuram Butt, 27, by phone and text message in the five hours before the knife-wielding gang of fanatics went on a murder spree that left eight people dead.

Evidence submitted to the inquest into the attack on June 3, 2017, details how Butt called Saeed just after 5pm, shortly after hiring the van that carried him, Rachid Redouane, 30, and Yousef Zaghba, 22, into Central London. Butt also sent a text to Saeed at about the same time.

Saeed texted the terrorist back and then called him unsuccessfully at least six times between 5.10pm and before the rampage began at about 10pm. 

Two days after the atrocity – in which the three killers were shot dead by police – Saeed contacted the administrator of a secret WhatsApp group of which both he and Butt were members to request all the content be deleted because ‘police were making arrests’ in Newham.

The WhatsApp group was called ILMA – meaning ‘knowledge’ in Arabic – and was used to share extremist material.

The inquest at the Old Bailey was told how Saeed was among 22 people arrested in connection with the London Bridge rampage. 

None was charged but a file on Saeed was sent to the Crown Prosecution Service because detectives suspected he knew about the attack before it was launched, yet did nothing to stop it – an offence that carries a sentence of up to five years. 

Saeed, who could not be contacted for comment, has denied any wrongdoing. The inquest continues.

The WhatsApp group was called ILMA – meaning ‘knowledge’ in Arabic – and was used to share extremist material. The inquest at the Old Bailey was told how Saeed was among 22 people arrested in connection with the London Bridge rampage [File photo]