A court declined to grant the older brother of the Manchester Arena bomber immunity from prosecution if he testifies in front of a public inquiry, according to The Independent.
Ismail Abedi denies knowing about or being involved in the attack on May 22nd, 2017, but has so far refused to participate with the investigation, citing legal privilege against self-incrimination.
Salman Abedi, his brother, exploded a suicide bomb amid a crowd of Ariana Grande fans and relatives waiting to pick them up, killing 22 people and injuring hundreds more. Hashem Abedi, another brother, was sentenced to life in prison for his role in the ISIS-claimed attack.
Ismail Abedi requested that the public inquiry obtain assurance from the attorney general that any evidence he provides will not be used against him in future criminal cases.
In his ruling, Sir John said allowing immunity to get Abedi to co-operate did not outweigh the potential effects on the administration of justice.
“If as a result of an undertaking from the Attorney General, the applicant was to disclose material to the inquiry which provided evidence to justify charges of murder or conspiracy to murder, then he could avoid trial for 22 murders and causing serious injury to many more,” he said.
“While less serious, if he were to disclose material… which evidenced a failure by him to disclose information to the authorities which could have prevented the bombing happening, a failure to prosecute would be considered by many to be a considerable affront to justice.”
Abedi is expected to be served with a legal notice soon which will “require” his attendance in person at the inquiry and while he will be entitled not to answer questions on the grounds of self-incrimination, he will have to justify why and on what grounds he is refusing to answer.