‘Allahu Akbar, Takbir’: Teen terror suspect’s cries before being shot dead by police, moments after murdering elderly couple

The last words of a teen terror suspect before he was shot dead by police after murdering an elderly couple in their home have been detailed in a coroner’s findings.

A teen terror suspect who stabbed an elderly couple to death advanced towards officers armed with a knife and yelling “Allahu Akbar” in the moments before he was shot dead, with a coroner finding he removed his tracking device moments before the shocking attack.
Raghe Mohamed Abdi, 22, was fatally shot by Queensland Police on the Logan Mwy at Drewvale, an outer suburb of Brisbane, on December 17, 2020 after lunging towards officers while armed with a knife.

Officers later discovered the bodies of Zoe Antill, 86, and her husband Maurice, 87, in their Parkinson home shortly after Abdi’s death.

The horrific incident sparked a lengthy coronial inquest which probed Abdi’s interactions with counter terrorism officials, over concerns he was preparing to join a terror group and fight in Syria, in addition to the events which led to Abdi’s fatal attack on the Antills.

Raghe Mohamed Abdi was fatally shot by police on the Logan Mwy on December 17, 2020 after approaching officers armed with a knife and yelling ‘Allahu Akbar’. Picture: Supplied

Abdi, 22, was on bail over offences related to an investigation into whether he was preparing to be involved in a foreign incursion before he cut off his ankle tracker. Picture: Supplied / Channel 9

Deputy State Coroner Stephanie Gallagher in April handed down her findings into the trio’s deaths, but made no recommendations due to the “unforeseeable” nature of the deaths and recommendations “already made and implemented”.

At the time of the couple’s deaths, Abdi was on bail for fraud charges and Commonwealth offences relating to an investigation in whether he was preparing to be involved in a foreign incursion.

In her findings, Ms Gallagher said Abdi was regarded as a hard worker and student who became more interested in Islam while studying at university in 2016.

Investigations by the Queensland Joint Counter Terrorism Team (QJCTT) suggested Abdi had voiced support for the terror groups Islamic State and Al-Shabaab and planned to travel to the middle east of Somalia to make “jihad” (holy war).

Abdi was arrested in 2019 on suspicion of attempting to engage in foreign incursion, after he was stopped at the border trying to fly into Somalia.

Ms Gallagher noted Abdi was remanded in custody until September 2020 after failing to appear at court in relation to a fraud charge, but was later granted bail with strict conditions.

Police later discovered the bodies of Zoe and Maurice Antill, who had been bashed and fatally stabbed by Abdi moments before he went onto the highway. Picture: Supplied

Abdi’s family said he “mostly kept to himself” while on bail and spent a lot of time in his room on the computer.

“Raghe (Abdi) told his father that he believed police were following him in cars while his sister drove him to the gym, and that officers sat outside and watched him while he was in the gym,” Ms Gallagher said.

“He was also having difficulty getting a job, partly because of his curfew hours, and partly because his charges had been reported online and employers could find out about them if they googled Raghe’s name.”

Tensions arose due to his inability to find a job - culminating in an argument on December 16, 2020 where he demanded his sister drop him off near bushland in Parkinson.

“At 3:25pm a tamper alert was sent from Raghe’s electronic monitoring device (EMD)... (he) removed his EMD and it showed no further movement,” Ms Gallagher said.

At 5.29am on December 17, Abdi was spotted walking on the Logan Mwy in Drewvale.

Constables James Ross and Drew Lavery responded - prompting Abdi to pull a knife from his pocket and advance towards them yelling “Allahu Akbar”.

After lunging at them shouting “Takbir” (God is greatest), both constables opened fire.

A coroner found police used appropriate force when they fatally shot Abdi, after he refused their directions to drop the knife as he advanced towards them. Picture: Supplied / Channel 9

Police later found the Antills’ bodies at their Parkinson home with “multiple blunt and sharp force injuries”.

Ms Gallagher ruled Abdi killed Maurice and Zoe Antill in a random attack in their home after assaulting them, then stabbing the pair with a knife from their kitchen.

“Ultimately and tragically, no one will ever know Raghe’s true motivation, and there can be no firm answers for the Antills or for (Abdi)’s family in respect of this issue,” she said.

Ms Gallagher found both constables used appropriate force when they fatally shot Abdi, as he had ignored their repeated directions to drop the knife.

She noted the monitoring of Abdi’s EMD while he was on bail was appropriate and the QJCTT made “every effort” to divert Abdi from his trajectory as he was becoming more and more radicalised.

But Ms Gallagher said there was a delay in the notification being sent to a QJCTT officer when Abdi removed his tracker which was “less than satisfactory”.

The officer was off his shift that morning and did not have his work mobile with him at the time, nor receive any notification to his personal mobile alerting him of the action.

“Even had the case officer been notified at the time that Raghe had removed his EMD, it is, in my view, unlikely that this would have prevented Maurice and Zoe’s deaths,” Ms Gallagher said.

“There is no evidence before me that the QJCTT had any information or knowledge of Raghe which would have allowed them to locate him at an earlier time sufficient to prevent his actions.”

Originally published as ‘Allahu Akbar, Takbir’: Teen terror suspect’s cries before being shot dead by police, moments after murdering elderly couple