A porter who had a one-on-one fight with London Bridge terrorist Usman Khan said Tuesday he acted on instinct by tackling him with a stick.
Lukasz, who only wanted to give his first name, said he was recovering from stab wounds and coming to terms with the trauma of the incident.
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Khan, an Islamist terror convict released from prison on licence, killed two people and wounded three others in a knife attack on Friday that started in the Fishmongers’ Hall, the headquarters of one of London’s historic trade guilds.
Then he moved on to the bridge where armed police shot him dead, five minutes after being alerted. In a statement issued through London’s Metropolitan Police, Lukasz described the attack as an “unimaginable” tragedy.
“I and several others tried to stop a man from attacking people inside the building. I did this using a pole I found. Someone else was holding a narwhal tusk.
Read more: London Bridge: Usman Khan kills two people in Knife attack
“The man attacked me, after which he left the building. A number of us followed him out but I stopped at the bollards of the bridge.
“I had been stabbed and was later taken to hospital to be treated. I am thankful that I have now been able to return home.
“When the attack happened, I acted instinctively. I am now coming to terms with the whole traumatic incident.” He sent his condolences to everyone affected by the “sad and pointless” attack.
Others joined in and, outnumbered, Khan tried to run outside but was trapped in. Khan went into the reception and the cloakroom before a showdown in the entrance hall.
Straight combat
Commodore Toby Williamson, the chief executive of Fishmongers’ Hall, described to the BBC what happened, saying Lukasz heard a scream, and as a first aider, went towards the sound of trouble.
“Lukasz pulls off the wall this long stick. He charges towards the bad guy and he impacts him on the chest,” said Williamson.
However, it had no effect as Khan had strapped on a hoax explosive device.
Mohammed, a Muslim kitchen porter and Lukasz, a Polish chef are amongst the heroes who tackled London Bridge terrorist Usman Khan.
Terrorism affects us all, all faiths & races. We must all stand together against terrorism, extremism and hate. https://t.co/n0J7Fl9uKs
— Yusuf Patel MBE (@YusufJPatel) December 1, 2019
“But he’s buying time. He allows others to escape, to move to adjacent rooms,” Williamson said. “At that point, he’s got about a one minute, one-on-one straight combat.
“He (Khan) works his way up Lukasz’s pole, slashing with this knife and he takes five wounds to his left side.
“It’s pretty gruesome.”
Others joined in and, outnumbered, Khan tried to run outside but was trapped in. Khan went into the reception and the cloakroom before a showdown in the entrance hall.
“Lukasz is back in at this point, leading the charge,” said Williamson.
“We are saddened and shocked by what Usman has done. “We totally condemn his actions and we wish to express our condolences to the families of the victims that have died and wish a speedy recovery to all of the injured.”
When Khan got outside, “the first one after him is Lukasz, shouting at everyone to get out of the way, get back.
“Lukasz is losing strength in his left side at this point — but his job is done.”
Extraordinary footage circulated on Twitter of one man using a fire extinguisher to try to incapacitate Khan while another kept him at arms’ length with the narwhal tusk.
Khan family shocked
After people pinned Khan down, police arrived and shot him dead. His stabbing spree killed Jack Merritt, 25, and 23-year-old Saskia Jones. Meanwhile Khan’s family said they condemned the attack unreservedly.
Read more: ISIS claims responsibility for Usman Khan’s London Bridge attack
In a brief statement, also issued through the police, they said: “We are saddened and shocked by what Usman has done. “We totally condemn his actions and we wish to express our condolences to the families of the victims that have died and wish a speedy recovery to all of the injured.”
AFP with additions from GVS news desk