Suicidal knifeman charges parade officers in UK screams ’I want to go back to Sri Lanka’ in court

• Kandhaiah claimed he was trying to get the officers to kill him and was not trying to harm anyone

A suicidal knifeman who ran at armed officers during the Horse Guards Parade in UK last year hurled abuse at a court and yelled ‘I want to go back to Sri Lanka’ on Wednesday.  Prashanth Kandhaiah, 30, came within seconds of being shot dead at the ceremonial parade ground at St James Park on Easter Monday, April 18, the Daily Mail reported. 

Kandhiah had searched ‘rat poison can kill people’ the day before his attack, as well as ‘I hate Britain’ and ‘police’.  
He had also looked up the London Bridge terror attacks from 2019.  

But Kandhaiah claimed he was trying to get the officers to kill him and was not trying to harm anyone. He told the jury during the trial: ‘I went there to get shot’.  
On the day of the incident he had sent one of his children a message saying: ‘Goodbye, love you. Daddy.’  

Kandhaiah was cleared by the jury of attempting to cause grievous bodily harm after a two day trial at Southwark Crown Court.  
But during the prosecution’s statement, he suddenly yelled: ‘F*** off! You can f*** off Britain. I want to go back to Sri Lanka!’  
He was then removed from the courtroom.  

He admitted the offence of having a bladed article, namely a black-handled kitchen knife.  

Jurors had heard how on April 18 Kandhaiah ran at the Ministry of Defence officers, PCs Ravinder Digpaul and Ryan Pariso, with the knife.  
CCTV footage showed him waiting for several minutes on Whitehall Road before suddenly running through the gates to the courtyard.  
Claire Langevad, prosecuting, described how Kandhaiah made ‘attempts to stab PC Digpaul’, who had to kick the defendant repeatedly to stop him stabbing him.  
Ms. Langevad added: ‘He [PC Digpaul} was able to draw out his side arm but it appeared not to deter him at all.  
‘PC Pasiro was able to take out a taser which subdued him.’  

It was at this point that Kandhaiah launched his tirade at the court. He was swiftly removed.  
Ms. Langevad continued: ‘A mobile phone was seized at the scene. There were messages from the defendant saying goodbye.’  
Reading from PC Digpaul’s impact statement she said the officer had been left fearful by the attack, and scared about ‘how close it came to a different outcome.’  
She read: ‘He describes struggling to sleep and switching off.  

‘His mother worries about him doing his job more than she did before the incident.  
‘A small child was running through a courtyard, and he said that the sound of the child running brought him back to the incident.’  
Richard Craven, defending Kandhaiah, told the court: ‘He believes that he is made of metal. He is unlikely to never not hold that view.  
‘He has opened his shirt to me and shown me his chest, insisting that he is half made of metal.  
‘He believes that he is controlled by a wood pigeon.  

‘His view is that there is nothing anyone can do to help him. He does seem to have got rather worse while in prison.’  
Mr.Craven told the court that he found lockdown particularly difficult because all his friends and family are in Sri Lanka.  
‘He is now rather keen to leave this country.   ‘He is a man of previous good character. He has always worked. He has always held down a job. 
He has even held positions of responsibility.’  

Kandhaiah, of Thamesmead, southeast London, denied and was cleared of attempting to cause grievous bodily harm but admitted having a bladed article.  
He will be sentenced at Southwark Crown Court tomorrow.’  

If you have been affected by the issues raised in this article, you can get help and support by calling the Samaritans anonymously and for free on 116 123 from a UK phone.