EXPLOSIVE material was found at the home of an al-Qaeda suspect being searched by police in central England and has been removed safely, British police said today. "We are confident that there is no longer a danger posed by explosives on the premises and work will begin to allow the local community to return to their homes as soon as is possible," a police spokesman said. Earlier, Home Secretary David Blunkett said the man posed "a very real threat to the life and liberty of our country".
The 24-year-old was arrested overnight in Gloucester under Britain’s Terrorism Act amid suspicions that he has links with Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaeda network and, reportedly, "shoe bomber" Richard Reid. Gloucestershire deputy police chief Martin Baker identified the suspect only as a British national of South Asian origin. He refused to comment on alleged links to Islamic extremists.
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Scotland Yard would not comment on reports that the suspect had been planning a suicide attack on a football ground. A "relatively small amount" of explosives was found, which was removed and examined, a Scotland Yard spokesman said. The suspect has been transferred from Gloucester to a police station in London where he will be questioned by detectives. He can be held for up to seven days in custody under the Terrorism Act. Sky News Television, quoting "security sources", said the man was suspected of links with "shoe bomber" Reid, who is serving a life sentence in the United States for trying to blow up an American Airlines Boeing 767 flight from Paris to Miami in December 2001 with explosives hidden in his shoes. |