It happened close to the Royal Artillery Barracks in Woolwich, South East London, and shocked the entire country. Why was Lee Rigby killed? – Now about Lee Rigby’s Death of an Army Man, who became headlines all over the world.
Who is Lee Rigby?
He was a 25-year-old drummer belonging to Middleton, Greater Manchester, and was stationed in the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.
During his service, he was assigned to Cyprus, Germany, and Afghanistan. Lee has left his ex-wife Rebecca and their two-year-old son, Jack, and went ahead with Aimee West, who became his fiancée.
As much as Lee supported the Help 4 Heroes charity, it could not save him from getting killed while donning a branded hoodie near his barracks in Woolwich, South East London. On his 30th birthday in 2017, Lee’s family celebrated in honor of him.
What happened to Lee Rigby?
An honorable British soldier named Lee Rigby was brutally killed by Islamic extremists Michael Adebolajo and Michael Adebowale in a horrific attack that included being run over by a car and being stabbed repeatedly.
They had been looking for a “right” victim since early morning, and finally, they found Lee Rigby when he was going back from his work in the Tower of London to Woolwich barracks on May 22nd, 2013.
When they saw he was wearing a Help 4 Heroes hoodie, they ran him down with their car and stabbed him with knives and a meat cleaver, nearly cutting off his head. The passer-by, Ingrid Loyau-Kennett, tried to save the body of Lee from other harm.
When armed policemen came to the scene, the killers lay in wait for them, ready to sacrifice themselves as martyrs. They were both hit and became wounded.
Lyn, Lee’s mother, reached out to the victims’ families on the fourth anniversary of her son’s death, which also was when a terrorist attack hit Manchester. She stressed the need for solidarity against terrorism.
At the time of the Manchester bomb, Phil McClure ( father of Lee McClure ) confessed his heart-wrenching experience.
The killing of Lee Rigby in 2013 caught the eyes and ears of the worldwide media. The incident received extensive coverage from media houses globally, thereby triggering a strong response in the United Kingdom and other countries.
The extreme violence associated with this particular incident and the fact that Muslim extremists perpetrated it on an American soldier during the daytime contributed immensely to its newsworthiness.
In addition, the case in which Michael Adebolajo and Michael Adebowale were tried for Rigby’s killing generated huge coverage by the press.
How Did Lee Rigby Die?
Private Lee James Rigby was a machine gunner and drummer with the 2nd battalion of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers based at Warminster, Wiltshire.
Before being posted as a Recruiter, he has also been deployed to several countries such as Cyprus, Germany, and Afghanistan. As he went back to the fortifications from work at the tower, Rigby was stabbed by attackers.
In February 2014, the first permanent memorial to him was erected in a football stadium known as The Valley; it stands less than one mile from the scene of his murder. According to the post-mortem, Rigby passed away due to multiple cuts.
Who Killed Lee Rigby?
The two Nigerians of Igbo descent turned up in London, where they converted to radical Islam. Michael Adebolajo and Michael Adebowale are also Christian converts.
The 28-year-old bomber, Adebowale Adebolajo, had attended the University of Greenwich, where he took a course in engineering. Adabiojajo was known to have been part of an outlawed extremist group.
In December 2013, both men were convicted for the murder of Lee Rigby – Adebolajo was sentenced to a whole life term of imprisonment and named Britain’s most dangerous prisoner.
The judge handed a term of imprisonment with a minimum of 45 years for Adebowale. Nonetheless, The Sun reported in 2017 that Adebowale had been transferred to Broadmoor Hospital at a whopping cost of about £250,000 annually to the taxpayer.
