Sara Zelenak was one of eight people killed in the June 3 attack. Photo / AP
Sara Zelenak was one of eight people killed in the June 3 attack. Photo / AP
The mother of Australian nanny Sara Zelenak has sat in a London court to hear how her daughter was killed in the London Bridge terror attack at the start of inquests into the deadly rampage.
Julie Wallace, with her partner Mark Wallace by her side, was in attendance as CoronerAndrew Harris opened and adjourned inquests at the Southwark Coroner's Court on Tuesday for five victims of the attack.
"All of our thoughts and condolences are with you at this terrible time, one of the most horrible things is for parents to be in court hearing the details of a death, particularly a violent one, of their children," he told them.
Zelenak, 21, and South Australian woman Kirsty Boden, 28, were among the eight people killed on June 3, when three attackers ploughed into pedestrians with a white van before stabbing revellers in Borough Market.
Details of the frenzied knife attacks on unarmed victims in the London Bridge terror attack were set out at the inquests into their deaths.
Zelenak, from Brisbane was found in Borough High Street, stabbed in the neck, and was subsequently identified by dental records and DNA.
Boden, from Loxton, South Australia, ran towards the danger in a selfless bid to save people.
She was found in the shadow of Southwark Cathedral, on Montague Close, with a stab wound to her chest, and was later identified by DNA and dental records.
The inquest also detailed how Sebastien Belanger, 26, of France, James McMullan, 32, from London and Ignacio Echeverria, 39, from Spain all died in the area on June 3.
McMullan, from Brent, northwest London, was killed by a haemorrhage after being stabbed in the chest in Borough Market.
Australian Kirsty Boden was one of the victims killed in the London Bridge attack. Photo / AP
He was found lying outside the post office on Borough High Street and was later identified by his father.
Chef Mr Belanger, originally from Angers, western France, was drinking at the nearby Boro Bistro when he was stabbed repeatedly in the chest, the inquest heard.
His body was located in Borough Market and he was identified by dental records and fingerprints while his loved ones spent several days unaware of his fate.
HSBC analyst Mr Echeverria, from As Pontes, Spain, was knifed in the back on London Bridge, having tried to defend a woman with his skateboard. His body was identified by his brother several days later, the hearing was told.
Armed police shot dead ringleader Khuram Butt, 27, and his two accomplices Rachid Redouane, 30, and Youssef Zaghba, 22, just eight minutes after the first emergency call was made.
The inquest proceedings were suspended by the coroner so the vast police operation was not hampered by his investigation.
A hearing will take place on Wednesday (UK time) into the deaths of Canadian Christine Archibald, 30, and Frenchmen Xavier Thomas, 45, and Alexandre Pigeard, 26.
