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The individual responsible for the violent assault at a Manchester synagogue was free on police bail in connection with an accusation of sexual assault at the time, according to available information.

The attacker, Jihad al-Shamie, aged 35, was being probed for the reported sex crime that reportedly occurred earlier this year.

Al-Shamie, who was born in Syria, is also thought to have a record of criminal offenses, though he had not drawn attention from counter-terrorism officials.

Shamie was killed by police gunfire by armed officers following the murder of a member of the Jewish community and caused serious harm to multiple other individuals during the attack at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue in north Manchester on Thursday.

Two individuals, Adrian Daulby, 53 and Melvin Cravitz, 66, lost their lives during the incident. One victim succumbed to a round discharged by officers aimed at the attacker.

Anti-terror units and intelligence agencies are currently investigating the attacker's background, with indications that he chose the holiest day in Judaism, the most sacred day in the Jewish calendar, to target worshippers.

Although Shamie was not known to counter-terrorism agencies or referred to the Prevent deradicalization program, he had faced prosecution for criminal offenses.

It remains unclear when the alleged sexual assault occurred, but the suspect had been bailed while under investigation by Greater Manchester police.

One source stated that he had additional criminal convictions, albeit for less serious crimes with no connection to terrorist activities.

“He was on nobody’s radar for terrorism but he certainly possessed a history of crime, though nothing to suggest he was going to do anything like this,” an informant remarked.

Police are examining whether Shamie sent a threatening message to a former Conservative MP in 2012.

A message to John Howell was sent by someone calling themselves “Jihad Alshamie” and stated, “It is people like you who deserve to die.”

The former MP, who left his position as Henley's representative in 2024, expressed uncertainty if it was the same person and believed that authorities did not treat the death threat with adequate seriousness back then.

A news report from that year indicated that he was likely targeted due to his pro-Israel stance.

“The last thing I want to appear as is a drama queen, but you have to take seriously a menacing message when it says, ‘I would like to see you dead,’” the former MP remarked at the time, in reports by the Jerusalem Post.

“It is not just a question of me, it is my family and my staff. All it takes is one person out there who is weird enough, with a distorted view of life, to make an attempt to act on it.” He added that local police had given him “extremely good security advice.”

Police have not confirmed whether the “Jihad Alshamie” who contacted Howell is the same individual who carried out the synagogue attack, but they are investigating a possible link.

Shabana Mahmood, Shabana Mahmood, said that the attacker was not under ongoing scrutiny by counter-terrorism police or intelligence services when the attack. They did not believe he had previously been on their radar, though investigations were still ongoing.