The alleged killer of David Amess had a look of “self-satisfaction” and “smugness” as he was led away by police after assassinating the veteran Conservative MP, a court has heard.
Julie Cushion, an aide to the MP, told of her horror as Amess was attacked as he held a constituency surgery in a church in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex.
Ali Harbi Ali, 26, denies murdering Amess, 69, on 15 October 2021. He also denies preparing terrorist acts by scouting and researching other MPs to kill, including the housing minister, Michael Gove.
Cushion, speaking from behind a screen, told the Old Bailey there was no security in place as Amess held his surgery in Belfairs methodist church, in his Southend West constituency.
She said there would have been some security available if the surgery had been held in Amess’s constituency office. However, the MP had wanted to get closer to the community as pandemic restrictions eased and so held the advice surgery in different locations, which were advertised on social media.
She said Amess had taken a selfie as the surgery was about the begin and posted it on Twitter.
Cushion was Amess’s constituency secretary and greeted people as they arrived.
The court heard earlier that Ali had posed as a constituent and said he wanted to see Amess as he had moved to the area and wished to discuss healthcare and local churches.
Ali had a midday appointment and was greeted by Cushion on his arrival. He said he wanted to use the toilet and Cushion showed him where it was.
Ali went in to the church vestry office where Amess was meeting constituents, with Cushion staying outside.
Another aide, Rebecca Hayton, was in the room with Ali and Amess, taking notes.
She said that after a few minutes, Ali talked about foreign affairs, despite the session being about constituency matters. His phone made a sound and Ali said “sorry”, which Hayton thought was an apology for the phone ringing. Ali then stood up, which she thought was so he could take a phone call.
Instead, Hayton said, a scene of horror unfolded: “He [Ali] leans over and stabs him straight in the stomach. David screamed, and sort of panicked. I think he stabbed him again.” Hayton added: “I saw it [the knife] go in once and as I got up he [Ali] kept going.”
Cushion, who had remained outside, told the jury she heard “a very piercing scream” and a loud crash, and thought it was furniture falling over. Hayton came running out “screaming that David had been stabbed and he was on the floor”, Cushion said.
She said she froze, with her colleague screaming at her to call 999.
Cushion said she later saw Ali being led out by police. Asked how he appeared, she said: “The image will stay with me for the rest of my life”. She told the jury Ali had a look of “self-satisfaction” and “smugness”.
Amess had received 21 stab wounds and was declared dead about an hour later.
Cushion said she and Amess had been close friends after he became the MP for Southend West.
Ali had travelled to Leigh-on-Sea on the morning of the attack from his home in Kentish town, north London.
The prosecution says Ali was a fanatical Islamist terrorist influenced by Islamic State propaganda, who had bought the knife used to stab Amess five years previously and had been researching an attack since 2019.
The trial continues.
