The district judge said he was satisfied that Ismail Abedi, 28 – who now calls himself Ishmale ben Romdhan – was aware of the hearing and had the opportunity to attend. Abedi, an IT worker, left his flat in Manchester last August and is now believed to be with his parents and three younger siblings in Libya. The last tanoi was made at Manchester Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday to check he was not in the building. Salman Abedi blew himself up in the Arena in May 2017 killing 22 men, women and children. His younger brother Hashem, 24, who was extradited from Libya, is serving a life sentence for helping him build the bomb. The inquiry wanted to question Ismail because his DNA was found on a hammer in a Nissan Micra car used by his two younger brothers to transport and store the explosive they had made. The victims’ families also wanted to question him about the radicalization of his brothers, particularly because Islamic State propaganda was found on Ismail’s phone when he returned from his honeymoon 20 months before the bombing. Abedi was arrested by police the day after the attack and questioned for 14 days before being released without charge. Image: Police believe Ismail had a ‘very unhealthy interest’ in IS By the time of the attack he had moved out of the family home and told police he had called his parents and asked them to take the brothers back to Libya because he was concerned they had dropped out of education. On August 28 last year, he was scheduled for seven stops under the Terrorism Act 2000 at Manchester Airport, but told police he would be returning to the country in mid-September. He missed his flight but returned to Manchester airport the next day and left the country. Image: Salman Abedi’s bomb killed 22 people at an Ariana Grande concert in May 2017 At a hearing last month, Ismail was found guilty, in absentia, of refusing to comply with a section 21 notice under the Inquiries Act 2005. Sophie Cartwright QC, prosecuting, said he was sent notice of the hearing on Tuesday to his last known address, telling him he had been found guilty, in his absence, of an offense under section 35 of the Inquiries Act. “He was sent a separate email notification of today’s hearing. We would submit that there is sufficient notice of this hearing and we would submit that he did not appear today. “As a result, we will assume that this is a jailable offense and that you have the authority to issue a warrant.” Image: Hashem Abedi sentenced to at least 55 years in prison for helping procure, buy, store and transport bomb components District Judge Jack McGarva told the hearing: “Not only was he emailed, but there was a lot of publicity. I’m sure he will have watched what happened in this court. “I would have issued the warrant at the last hearing, but the Magistrates’ Court Act did not allow me to do so. I am now able to issue a warrant and do so under section 13 of the Act.” The judge told the hearing last month that he was prevented from imposing a prison sentence in the defendant’s absence, where the case had been started by subpoena. But he said there was an interest in ensuring others in similar situations attended and met their obligations, and a warrant would allow Interpol to publish a “want” notice. “If it crosses any of the countries we work with, it will make its way [here]”, the judge added. Nick de la Poer QC told the hearing that Abedi was “confused and confused”, adding: “He threw up every obstacle he could think of, and when those failed, he left the jurisdiction.” Image: (LR) Salman Abedi and his brothers Hashem and Ismail The victims’ families have questioned whether Ismail will ever be caught and accused him of “truly despicable contempt”. Kim Harrison, solicitor at Slater and Gordon, who is representing 11 of the victims’ families, said: “Whilst we welcome the sentencing of Ismail Abedi today, we remain very disappointed that the sentencing had to take place in his absence. “We are seriously concerned about how Abedi was able to leave the country before testifying to the inquiry in the first place. “His departure from the country should never have happened and despite the conviction he is unlikely to face real justice until he is caught. “The families deserve to know the truth about what happened that night and the contempt shown to them by Ismail Abedi is truly despicable.”
