Hero who talked would-be bomber out of blowing up maternity ward speaks out for first time as he prepares to receive Britain's second-highest gallantry medal
A hero who talked a would-be bomber out of blowing up a maternity ward has spoken out for the first time as he prepares to receive an award for his bravery. Nathan Newby, 35, from Leeds, West Yorkshire, convinced Mohammad Farooq not to proceed with the atrocity at the city's St James's Hospital on January 20, 2023. The 'self-radicalised lone-wolf terrorist' had taken a homemade pressure cooker bomb to the ward with the intention to 'kill as many nurses as possible'. But Mr Newby, who was a patient at the time but had stepped out for a smoke break, spotted Farooq 'swaying' unusually as he stood outside the building, a trial heard. He checked on him to make sure he was alright, which began several hours of heart-to-heart conversation – and diffused the situation. Not only did the would-be attacker confess to having a bomb, he 'asked for a cuddle' several times, before eventually saying: 'Phone the police before I change my mind.' Farooq was jailed for life with a minimum term of 37 years at Sheffield Crown Court in March last year. And Mr Newby has now spoken publicly for the first time, ahead of receiving the George Medal, Britain's second highest civilian gallantry award, for his courage. Nathan Newby (pictured), 35, from Leeds, West Yorkshire, convinced Mohammad Farooq not to proceed with the atrocity at the city's St James's Hospital on January 20, 2023 Farooq (pictured) was jailed for life with a minimum term of 37 years at Sheffield Crown Court in March last year Speaking in advance of the ceremony on Wednesday, he said Farooq was 'probably a nice guy' who was 'going through bad things at the time'. Mr Newby said he was 'just in the right place at the right time'. Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb, who sentenced Farooq, called Mr Newby 'an extraordinary, ordinary man'. The judge said his 'decency and kindness' that day 'prevented an atrocity in a maternity wing of a major British hospital'.Farooq had been inspired by the so-called Islamic State group to commit a terrorist act, a trial heard. He chose the hospital as a target as he had been a clinical support worker there and had a long-running grievance with nurses on his ward. That night, Mr Newby had briefly left the building, where he was receiving care, to vape and get 'a bit of fresh air'. He spotted Farooq with his hands in his pockets, 'swaying like he'd had some bad news or something'.'I just went over to see if he was alright, to see if I could make him feel better,' Mr Newby said. 'I said, "How are you, pal? Are you alright?", and it just went from there really.'He said Farooq eventually told him he was there 'for some sort of revenge' and, about an hour into the conversation, revealed he had a bomb.Mr Newby explained: 'He was constantly watching [his bag], it was about seven feet away from us, and every nurse that walked past it, he was like, looking at them, looking at the bag.'And then I asked him what was in it... and then he just come out with it... he ummed and aahed, didn't want to, but then I got out of him. He just said it's a bomb.'I could hear it in his voice, it wasn't a joke.'So I asked to have a look at it, just to confirm it, and then he just happily opened it up and showed me it.'He said 'part of me' was scared – but his main concern was to try and move Farooq away from the building. Farooq (pictured, in the hospital foyer) had taken a homemade pressure cooker bomb to the ward with the intention to 'kill as many nurses as possible' But Mr Newby spotted him 'swaying' unusually as he stood outside the building and checked on him to make sure he was alright. Pictured: Farooq's device at the hospital 'I wasn't going to shout and things like that... I just thought, the best way is to keep quiet and just get him out of the way and be tactical about it,' Mr Newby continued. 'If it goes off, it's just going to be me and him, and I want to make sure it's just me and him and not no one else.'He asked Farooq about the potential radius of the explosion and moved him away from the entrance to some nearby benches. It meant, Mr Newby said: 'If it had have gone off at least, it would have just took the doors, it wouldn't take the whole building out.' He said this plan was 'pure instinct': 'I don't know where it came from.'Mr Newby said they 'just chatted' for several hours and Farooq, who he said seemed 'normal', even told him about his family and children.'I don't judge anybody. Everybody's different and unique in their own ways aren't they? I didn't judge him.'Mr Newby said Farooq asked him for a hug and called him a 'top guy', before saying: 'Phone the police before I change my mind.'He said: 'It was a bit of a relief, but at the end of the day he could have still changed his mind at any time, even if we were on the phone to the police or not.'Mr Newby said the enormity of what had happened did not hit him until he was sitting in the back of a police van after armed officers arrived and detained Farooq.'It started sinking in that it could have been different,' he said. 'Emotions started coming, it was like wow, as if that's just happened.'During the phone call to police, Mr Newby told them Farooq 'seemed like a nice guy deep down'.Asked how he felt about him now, he said: 'He probably is a nice guy. It was just, his head was in the wrong place at the wrong time.'I would say he was just going through bad things at the time, and when you're in that situation, your mind's capable of doing all sorts of things that you don't expect.'Mr Newby said he did not think of himself as a hero, but as someone who was 'just in the right place at the right time'.He said: 'I only think about that night [now] if someone brings it up. And then it's like, it's crazy how it could have gone...'I was a patient at the time, so I wouldn't be here, because I was at the front of the building, so it would have took me out.'
