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The suspect who carried out the violent assault at a Manchester synagogue had been released on police bail related to an accusation of sexual assault when the incident took place, as per reports.

Jihad al-Shamie, who was 35 years old, was under investigation over an alleged sex crime that reportedly occurred in recent months.

The attacker, who was born in Syria, is also thought to have a record of criminal offenses, however he was not being monitored from anti-terror authorities.

The assailant was fatally shot by responding police after he killed a Jewish man and severely injured several other people during the attack at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue in north Manchester last Thursday.

Two individuals, 53-year-old Adrian Daulby and 66-year-old Melvin Cravitz, lost their lives during the incident. One victim was fatally hit a bullet fired by armed police targeting the attacker.

Anti-terror units and security services are working to uncover the assailant's history, as it is believed that he selected Yom Kippur, the most sacred day in the Jewish calendar, to attack those praying.

Although the attacker had not been flagged to counter-terrorism agencies or referred to the anti-radicalisation scheme Prevent, he had faced prosecution for prior crimes.

It remains unclear when the alleged sexual assault took place, 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 unrelated 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,” said one source.

Police are examining whether the attacker was behind a death threat to a former Conservative MP in the year 2012.

The email to John Howell came from 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, said he was unsure if it was the same person and believed that police had not taken the threat against his life with adequate seriousness at the time.

Media coverage from 2012 indicated that Howell was likely targeted due to his pro-Israel stance.

“I don’t want to seem overdramatic, but you have to take seriously a menacing message when it says, ‘I would like to see you dead,’” the former MP said in 2012, according to coverage 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 unstable enough, with a warped perspective of life, to make an attempt to carry this out.” He added that Thames Valley police had provided him with “highly effective security advice.”

Law enforcement have not confirmed whether the “Jihad Alshamie” who messaged the former MP is the identical person who carried out the assault on the synagogue, but they are exploring a possible link.

The home secretary, Shabana Mahmood, stated that the attacker was not under ongoing scrutiny by counter-terrorism police or security agencies when the incident. They had no reason to think he had previously been on their watchlist, though inquiries were continuing.