One of those people is Edward Pettifer, the 31-year-old stepson of a Royal Family nanny, who was killed when the American-born Shamsud-Din Jabbar drove a rental pick-up truck into crowds of people.
News of Pettifer’s death reached the senior members of the Royals in the United Kingdom and they began their consolation of the family, with King Charles III making a phone call to them whilst the Prince and Princess of Wales opted to make an emotional statement.
“Catherine and I have been shocked and saddened by the tragic death of Ed Pettifer,” Prince William said via Instagram. “Our thoughts and prayers remain with the Pettifer family and all those innocent people who have been tragically impacted by this horrific attack.”
Pettifer was the stepson of Tiggy Legge-Bourke, who served as the nanny to Prince Harry and William from 1993-1999 and has remained close with the brothers, despite them now being into their 40s.
She helped the pair through the death of their mother, Princess Diana, as well as remaining a close aide to King Charles, who was waiting to ascend to the throne behind Queen Elizabeth II at the time.
London’s Metropolitan Police are helping Legge-Bourke and her family through the tragedy and the return of Pettifer’s body to the United Kingdom for funeral services. Prince Harry will not publicly comment on the matter.
The attack came minutes after Jabbar posted pro-ISIS and Islamist content to Facebook, before being shot dead by police at the scene. Investigators later found improvised explosive devices in the area and guns.
He had served in the United States Army before becoming a terrorist, and was carrying an ISIS flag on the vehicle at the time.
The FBI later revealed the attack was premeditated “100% inspired” by the terror cell, but they believe he acted alone. It is not thought to be connected to the Cybertruck explosion at a hotel in Las Vegas.