UK-Iranian man arrested in RAF Fairford investigation

Armed officers arrested five men in Whelford, Gloucestershire, overnight on Sunday after a call at about 12.45am concerning three suspicious vehicles that appeared to be heading towards nearby RAF Fairford. The men were initially arrested on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act and subsequently on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act. Counter Terrorism Policing is leading the investigation. [1]

US President Donald Trump said British and American authorities had investigated and watched the men for a long time. He credited cooperation with Britain for the arrests and said the men were “looking to do big damage”. He said he did not know whether Scotland Yard had been involved. [4] [8]

Press Association reported that the police operation was not intelligence-led, saying investigators had not known of a potential plot beforehand. That account concerns advance knowledge of a plot, rather than whether the men had previously been monitored. [6]

Police placed a 400-metre cordon around the vehicles while Army explosive-disposal specialists examined them. Around 85 households were advised to evacuate. The five men remained in custody as investigators worked to establish the circumstances. [1] [2]

Update

The arrests of five men near RAF Fairford were neither “pre-planned nor intelligence-led”, sources cited by The Times said in an account relayed by the BBC. Police said armed officers responded after a call at about 12.45am on Sunday about three suspicious vehicles that appeared to be travelling towards the base. [9] [1]

The Telegraph reported that Fairford was on its highest state of alert after the incident and that RAF Lakenheath’s threat level had risen, according to the BBC’s newspaper review. Reuters witnesses saw armoured vehicles and soldiers at the gates of Lakenheath and RAF Mildenhall. [9] [12]

There were also reports of security changes *before* the arrests. Sky News defence and security editor Deborah Haynes said two sources told her Fairford’s threat level had been raised because of a specific warning hours earlier. Air & Space Forces Magazine reported increased security at the base for several days. It is unclear whether the reported warning concerned the five men. [11] [14]

ITV News and Sky News report that investigators are examining a possible Iranian connection. Police say the five men remain in custody on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act. [10] [11] [1]

Update

Defence Secretary Wes Streeting thanked a farmer who called 999 after seeing masked men near RAF Fairford early on Sunday, but told the BBC she had only a ‘partial picture’ of what happened. The farmer believes she foiled the men’s plans by ‘pure luck’. Streeting declined to discuss operational-security matters. [15] [17]

US President Donald Trump said the five men arrested near the base had been ‘under view for a long time’. The Press Association, however, reported that the police operation near Whelford was not intelligence-led and that investigators had not known of a potential plot in advance. [15] [18]

Counter Terrorism Policing said it received a call at about 00:45 about three suspicious vehicles apparently heading towards the base. Armed officers responded and arrested five men near Whelford. Police did not identify the caller. [1]

Update

At a press conference, British counter-terrorism police said the five British men arrested on suspicion of plotting an attack on the RAF airbase near Fairford would be released on bail on Monday afternoon. [20]

Police said they would continue investigating the five men despite the planned release. [20]

Update

Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, head of UK counter-terrorism policing, said the men were being released on Monday afternoon after extensive interviews and enquiries. They remain under investigation and face stringent restrictions on their movements and contact with others while detectives pursue multiple lines of enquiry. [22]

Taylor said police were considering several possibilities, including whether the men might have acted, knowingly or unknowingly, on behalf of a foreign state. He did not name a country. [22]

Update

Gloucestershire Constabulary said residents in Whelford could return to their homes, although a cordon remained around three vehicles at the location. About 85 households had been advised to evacuate as a precaution. [25]

The advice followed the arrest of five men early on Sunday 27 September. They were arrested on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act and subsequently on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act. Temporary Chief Constable Maggie Blyth said Counter Terrorism Policing was leading the investigation. [25]

A nearby leisure centre had been opened for people unable to stay with friends or family during the precautionary evacuation advice. [25]

Update

Counter Terrorism Policing said the three vehicles had been extensively examined with military support and help from forensic experts. Officers recovered petrol, but found no improvised explosive devices. Police did not specify how much petrol was recovered. [22]

Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor said the five men arrested in connection with the incident had been released on police bail on Monday. They remain under investigation, with conditions restricting their movements and contact with others. [22]

Taylor said searches of properties in London had concluded and police were reducing the investigative cordons near RAF Fairford. He expected to close those scenes by Wednesday, 30 September. [22]

Update

The BBC says it understands that one of the five men arrested near RAF Fairford in the early hours of Sunday dialled 999 himself. His call came almost an hour before a farmer called police after seeing men in balaclavas. [33] All five men were released on bail on Monday. [33]

Why the man called, what he told police and the exact times of the two calls remain unclear. [33]

Update

Counter Terrorism Policing said the 27-year-old was arrested in Westminster, London, on Thursday afternoon on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts under section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006. The investigation concerns activity reported near RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire on 27 September. [34]

A 26-year-old UK national has also been questioned under caution, and officers have searched two properties in the same area. [34]

Senior counter-terrorism officer Vicki Evans said investigators were examining possible foreign-state involvement. Police did not identify a state or link that line of inquiry to the arrested man’s nationality. [34]