ASSAULT – Clapham chemical attacker Abdul Ezedi could have been killed by his injuries or ‘gone north, south east or west or abroad’, Scotland Yard Wednesday admitted as the manhunt rolled into its second week.
The Metropolitan Police said mother injured when she was doused with a corrosive liquid along with her two children in south London had been in a relationship with her suspected attacker.
Reports Coming in
The breakdown of the relationship may have been a motive for the harrowing attack, which saw the 31-year-old and her two daughters, aged three and eight, hurt, Commander Jon Savell said.
A massive manhunt is under way for Ezedi, with the last confirmed sighting now at around 11pm on Wednesday January 31, a few hours after the attack.
Where he was Last Seen
He was initially travelling around on the Tube network using his bank card and, after that, appears to have been walking a route that broadly hugged the Thames.
She Still Can’t Talk
The hurt woman, who may lose the sight in her right eye, remains sedated in hospital and is still too ill to speak to police.
Investigators said that she had agreed to meet him on the day of the attack, and that she and her children were in a car with Ezedi when he struck.
Cmder Savell added: ‘He could have gone north, he could have gone east, south, west or he could have gone abroad.’
Officers will return to the scene of the attack on Wednesday evening, a week after a 31-year-old woman and her two children, aged eight and three, were doused with a corrosive liquid.
Cmdr Savell told journalists that the massive manhunt for Ezedi is ‘an incredibly high priority attempted murder investigation’.
Motive of the Attack
Turning to potential motives, he said: ‘They were in a relationship and that relationship had broken down.’
The latest confirmed sighting of Ezedi on CCTV is now on Vauxhall Bridge Road at around 11pm on the night of the attack, January 31.
The Day of Attack
She had agreed to meet Ezedi on the night of the attack, and she and her children were in a car with him when they were injured, police said.
Manhunt Continues
Hundreds of calls have been received from the public with possible sightings of the suspect, who was initially using his bank card to travel around on the Tube network.
His route appears to broadly follow the River Thames, and investigators say they are keeping an open mind about whether he has jumped or been pushed into the water.
But Darius Nasimi, from the charity the Afghanistan and Central Asian Association, also appealed for anyone in the community who may be sheltering him to contact police.
