Heaton Park synagogue attack: Inquest opens into deaths of two worshippers
Judge Alexia Durran, chief coroner of England and Wales, offered condolences to the families and friends of both victims
Manchester Coroner’s Court has heard that Melvin Cravitz, 66, died from multiple knife wounds inflicted by Jihad Al-Shamie during the terror attack on Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue.
A second victim, Adrian Daulby, 53, died from a single gunshot wound to the chest, fired by an armed police officer who responded to the scene.
The court was told these details as inquests into both men’s deaths were opened and then adjourned.
Daulby, described by mourners as a “quiet hero,” had leapt from his seat to block the synagogue’s doors as the attack unfolded during Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.
He held the main doors shut as Al-Shamie attempted to force his way inside to continue his rampage.
Daulby was fatally shot in the chest by an officer while behind the door, and was pronounced dead at 10:15am, according to Chief Superintendent Lewis Hughes of Greater Manchester Police (GMP).
Moments before, Cravitz had been stabbed by Al-Shamie, a 35-year-old Syrian-born UK citizen, who began his attack by driving his Kia Picanto at security staff and the synagogue’s external gates around 9:30am.
Al-Shamie then exited the vehicle, armed with a knife and wearing a fake suicide belt, and began stabbing worshippers.
Members of the public and the Community Security Trust (CST) administered first aid and CPR to Cravitz, who was taken to Manchester Royal Infirmary and pronounced dead at 10:45am.
Armed police shot and killed Al-Shamie at the scene.
Judge Alexia Durran, chief coroner of England and Wales, offered condolences to the families and friends of both victims at the start of the hearing.
She said the inquest had reached only “provisional findings,” not final conclusions: Mr Cravitz died of stab wounds and Mr Daulby died of a gunshot wound.
Representatives from GMP, Counter-Terror Policing North West, the CST, and the government’s legal department attended the hearing, in person or via video link.
The hearing lasted around 45 minutes and was adjourned for a pre-inquest review scheduled for February 18 next year.
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