Scotland Yard arrests man near UK Parliament
27 April 2017 6:04 PM GMT
Armed police have arrested a man believed to have been carrying knives in Whitehall, central London, close to parliament. Scotland Yard's counter-terrorism command was leading the investigation into the man and why he was allegedly in possession of knives.
Police said in a statement giving the first official details: "A man has been arrested in Whitehall this afternoon, at approximately 14.22, following a stop and search as part of an ongoing operation.
"The man was arrested in Parliament Street, junction with Parliament Square, by armed officers from the Met's specialist firearms command.
"The man, aged in his late 20s, was arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon and on suspicion of the commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism. Knives have been recovered from him. "He is being detained under the Terrorism Act and is in custody in a south London police station. "Detectives from the counter-terrorism command are continuing their investigation, and as a result of this arrest there is no immediate
known threat." The operation that led to the daylight arrest was believed to have followed an intelligence operation that had earlier identified the man detained as being of concern to counter-terrorism investigators.
No one is thought to have been injured.
Security is especially tight around Whitehall following last month's terrorist attack in Westminster in which five people died. The suspect was held on Parliament Street for more than half an hour, without speaking or struggling. While two officers detained him, around two dozen heavily armed police blocked off the traffic and pedestrians on one side of the road with tape.
He was led away into a police car at around 3.15pm, while scenes of crime officers examined knives and a rucksack on the traffic island in the middle of Parliament Street at the junction with Parliament Square. Few MPs were in the Palace of Westminster because parliament is winding down before the election and Theresa May has already headed out on to the campaign trail.
Teen pleads guilty to plotting attack on Buckingham Palace
A 19-year-old Islamic State-inspired suspect on Thursday admitted plotting attacks on the iconic Buckingham Palace and an Elton John concert among other potential London targets. Haroon Syed pleaded guilty at the Old Bailey court here to "researching, planning and attempting to source" materials for home-made explosive devices for use in attacks on Buckingham Palace and an Elton John concert in Hyde Park, among other potential London targets. Syed, warned by Judge Michael Topolski that a life sentence is likely to be handed down, will be sentenced on June 8 after a probation and psychiatric report. The Londoner pleaded guilty to a plot running from April to Sept. 2016 to get materials for a bomb to stage attacks. Syed's older brother, Nadir Syed, was jailed last year for plotting an IS inspired attack.
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