Finsbury Park attack trial - as it happened: Darren Osborne faces life imprisonment after being found guilty of murder

Father-of-four from Cardiff had denied the offences

(Rex)

The Finsbury Park terror attacker faces life imprisonment of being convicted of murder and attempted murder.

A jury took just under an hour to reach the unanimous verdicts, disregarding Darren Osborne’s unsubstantiated claim another man ploughed a van into Muslim worshippers leaving mosques after Ramadan prayers.

The atrocity, shortly after midnight on 19 June, killed one man and injured nine other victims.

Justice Cheema-Grubb said she would sentence Mr Osborne on Friday morning.

Thanking the jury for their service, she added: "These verdicts have an impact far wider than inside this courtroom...they are one of hte most important things you have done in your lives."

Scroll down to read how we covered today's proceedings.

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Prosecutors had accused Mr Osborne of conjuring his unexpected defence “out of thin air” and urged jurors to dismiss the “frankly absurd” account on Wednesday.

The father-of-four took to the stand for a second day to tell Woolwich Crown Court the deadly attack was carried out by a man called Dave, who was not seen by witnesses or recorded on CCTV.

“He’s like Dynamo, he’s an illusion, an illusionist, he can make himself vanish perhaps, I don't know,” Mr Osborne told the jury.

The 48-year-old claims he, Dave and another man called Terry Jones planned to attack a pro-Palestinian march in London, hoping Jeremy Corbyn would attend, but were thwarted by road closures.

Mr Osborne told the court that he “wasn’t interested” in finding a new target after driving from Cardiff on 18 June and did not plan to kill Muslims in Finsbury Park, instead believing they were going to a pub.

He claimed that Dave jumped into the van in the four seconds it was not filmed on CCTV and ploughed it into a group of Muslim worshippers helping a collapsed man.

Asking how Dave allegedly took over while the van was moving at speed, Mr Osborne said he put it in neutral and “shimmied over real quick”.

He had “no answer” to a series of questions on why he supposedly decided to change his trousers in the footwell and did not pull over, adding: “We're a peculiar bunch of guys.”

Prosecutor Jonathan Rees QC said the defendant’s account was a “desperate attempt” to evade responsibility.

Closing the prosecution’s case, Mr Rees said the involvement of Dave and Terry was a “fabrication” the defendant cobbled together after hearing days of evidence against him.

Body-worn camera footage shows Mr Osborne telling police he was the van’s driver, initially claiming he lost control before later launching into a rant about Muslims, saying: “At least I had a proper go.”

A police officer who interviewed the suspect in hospital recorded him saying he was “flying solo” and that no-one else was involved in the attack.

Key Points

• Jury unanimously convicts 48-year-old for murder and attempted murder
• Defence barrister tells jury they cannot reach verdict based on 'repugnant' views
• Judge says they must 'put aside any emotional response' to attack
• Prosecution tells court Darren Osborne carried out attack alone out of 'hatred for Muslims'
• Jury urged to disregard 'absurd' claims a man called Dave ploughed van into crowd and disappeared
• Father-of-four claims he planned attack with two men called Dave and Terry Jones
• Defendant tells jury they originally wanted to attack Rochdale politician and kill Jeremy Corbyn at pro-Palestinian march
• Prosecution argues Dave and Terry are 'fabrications' created on Friday in response to their case

[1 February 2018 15:53 · Lizzie Dearden]

After under an hour of deliberations, the jury has found Darren Osborne guilty of both murder and attempted murder.

The verdicts were unanimous. Mr Osborne did not react in the dock as they were read out by the foreman

[1 February 2018 15:56 · Lizzie Dearden]

Justice Cheema-Grubb has thanked the jury for their service, saying it was "one of the most important deision you have done in your life".

She says she will sentence Mr Osborne from 10.30am tomorrow

[1 February 2018 16:05 · Lizzie Dearden]

The live blog will now be drawing to a close, with coverage resuming at the sentencing hearing tomorrow.

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