Manchester Arena bomber Salman Abedi left a handwritten note to his landlady apologising for “any mess” he made, before detonating his rucksack packed with homemade explosives at the venue, a court has heard.
Jurors at the Old Bailey were shown a scribbled apology on a sheet of paper left inside apartment 39, Granby House, central Manchester, which was recovered when police searched the rental property on May 24 2017, two days after Abedi brought terror to the city.
It read: “Sorry if there is anything missing in the apartment or any mess made, the extra 150 (pounds) and the rest of the week’s rent can hopefully cover it. ‘Sam’.”
Abedi, 22, used the false name “Sam Abdi” to rent the one-bedroom property from Ruth Bain, agreeing to pay £750 for a two-week short-term stay, jurors previously heard.
Prosecutors said Abedi and his younger brother Hashem used various addresses, vehicles and mobile phones to organise, stockpile and store components for the bomb.
The brothers left their family home in Elsmore Road, Fallowfield, in April on one-way tickets, accompanied by their parents. But Salman returned, alone, on May 18, jurors were told.
Hashem, now also 22, is on trial accused of conspiring with Salman over the plot, which killed 22 people and injured hundreds of others.
Photographs taken during searches of the Granby House flat and the family home in the days after the bombing showed discarded oil cans, residue from bomb-making chemicals, and various nuts and bolts, the court heard.
Jurors previously heard how Salman agreed to pay £600 upfront to Ms Bain, with a further £150 part-way through his stay, and handed the landlady a handwritten note containing his false name, a “previous address” and some contact details.
Ms Bain told police her subsequent attempts to contact the new, short-term tenant were unsuccessful. She later recognised his face from media coverage of the bombing suspect.
The trial continues.
