Ahamed Samsudeen supermarket terror attack inquest hears from former prison cellmate
A coronial inquest is examining the radicalization of Ahamed Samsudeen, who carried out a 2021 supermarket knife attack in New Zealand. A former cellmate testified that Samsudeen faced verbal abuse and mistreatment by prison staff during his time in custody.
Why it matters
The inquest highlights critical questions regarding the management of extremist prisoners and the potential failures of government agencies to prevent violent radicalization.
Sri Lankan refugee Ahamed Samsudeen attacked shoppers with a knife in a supermarket before he was shot dead by undercover police. Photo / Composite / NZ Herald
Ahamed Samsudeen, the man who went on to carry out a supermarket knife attack, was allegedly mistreated by Corrections staff and verbally abused by other inmates, some of whom called him a terrorist.
That’s according to the inmate who was in a cell next to Samsudeen.
Samsudeen was in prison on remand for four years, including 17 months in segregation, before he was found guilty on two charges of possessing objectionable publications, namely Islamic State propaganda and violent religious hymns , in 2021.
He was given a community-based sentence and released in July 2021.
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