A police handout image taken from CCTV footage and released on September 20, 2005 shows London bombing suspects at Luton train station in central England.
One day before blowing themselves up in a coordinated attack on London’s transport system that killed 52 people and injured 700 others, two suicide bombers sent each other playful text messages in which they posed as characters from the 1980s television series The A-Team, a London inquest has revealed.
The inquest seeks to establish, among other things, whether the July 7, 2005 attacks could have been prevented and whether emergency response teams could have responded more quickly. The Telegraph reports that the text messages were presented at the inquest last week, but that the judge only lifted a publication ban late last night. (See an interactive graphic of the bombing.)
Germain Lindsay, 19, and Mohammed Sidique Khan, the 30-year old mastermind of the attacks, referred to each other as Face and BA Baracus, referenced the character “Howling Mad,” and repeatedly used Baracus’ catchphrase, “I ain’t getting on no plane.”
According to the Guardian, Khan texted Lindsay at 2.23pm on July 4 to say: “Face you mutha f_ _ _ _ _ il rearange ya face if ya stab me wiv dat needle cos i said i aint getting on no plain fool.” (See a map of Europe’s war on terrorism.)
Nine minutes later, Lindsay texted back to insist that the character of Baracus was his. “F_ _ _ u b_ _ _ _, dats my line, il stab u wid a f_ _ _ing needle jus 4 da fun of it. And 2hear u scream like a blatch!!! Now lets get dis right. I aint getting on no plain! fool!”
Khan detonated a bomb on board a Circle Line Underground train at the Edgeware Road stop, killing six people. Lindsay killed 26 people on a Piccadilly Line train between King’s Cross and Russell Square.
Police retrieved the message from Lindsay’s phone, which they recovered from the bomb site.
At 4.35am on July 6—the day before the bombings—Khan texted Lindsay, writing: “Havin major problem cant make time will ring ya when i got it sorted wait at home.” (Witnesses have already testified that the attacks may have been scheduled for July 6, but then postponed by Khan.)
Lindsay texted back six minutes later: “No bulls_ _ _ doctor! fix it!”
He texted again at 5:15am : “I aint getting on no plane! Murdock tel dis fool.”
Khan replied at 5.33am: “Il ring you in afternoon twoish.”
Two other conspirators—Shehzad Tanweer and Hasib Hussain—launched separate attacks on another Underground train and a double-decker bus.