Donald Trump pays tribute to 'great American' Kurt Cochran killed in Westminster

Kurt Cochran and his wife Melissa, who is in hospital.
PA
Francesca Gillett24 March 2017

Donald Trump has paid tribute to a US tourist killed in the Westminster terror attack, calling him “a great American”.

Kurt Cochran was on holiday with his wife to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary when he died after falling from Westminster Bridge.

He was the third of four victims killed when Kent-born Khalid Masood went on a rampage outside the Houses of Parliament on Wednesday afternoon.

Also killed was PC Keith Palmer, Spaniard Aysha Frade and a 75-year-old man who is yet to be named.

Kurt Cochran, of Utah, was killed in the Westminster terror attack, pictured with his wife Melissa.

On Thursday evening the US President tweeted a tribute to US victim Mr Cochran, whose wife Melissa is recovering from hospital after being seriously injured.

President Trump said: “A great American, Kurt Cochran, was killed in the London terror attack.

Victim: Kurt Cochran.

“My prayers and condolences are with his family and friends.”

Previously, on the day of the attack, the US leader said: “Spoke to U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May today to offer condolences on the terrorist attack in London.

“She is strong and doing very well.”

Former US president Barack Obama also tweeted his own message of support, which read: “My heart goes out to the victims and their families in London.

“No act of terror can shake the strength and resilience of our British ally.”

The family of Mr Cochran said they were "heartbroken" to hear of his death and called him a good man and loving husband.

Mr Cochran and his wife were due to return to the US on Thursday.

Police said 29 people were injured in the incident, including several critically.

The latest victim who died, a 75-year-old man, had his life support withdrawn on Thursday evening.

Isis has claimed responsibility for the attack and police have carried out raids across Birmingham and east London.

Tributes for Westminster & Parliament Attack

1/20

Masood, 52, had been known to MI5 as a “peripheral figure”, Theresa May told the Commons. He was born in Kent but had recently moved to Birmingham.

On Thursday evening Londoners held an emotional vigil for the victims in Trafalgar Square, attended by Home Secretary Amber Rudd and Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in