Suspect in alleged plot against British base called police before arrest, UK media report

Toby Shepheard/Reuters

One of the suspects in the alleged plot targeting a UK airbase used by the US military called the police shortly before they were arrested, multiple British media outlets have reported.

The five men were arrested early Sunday on suspicion of explosive offenses and later terrorism charges near a Royal Air Force base at Fairford in western England, from where US B-1 bombers have been flying missions against Iran.

The incident triggered a major security response in the area and sparked alarm on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as accusations of foreign involvement.

The five men were quickly released on bail and police have now confirmed no explosives were found in three vans at the scene, but the investigation remains ongoing.

The latest revelation that one of the men called the police, was first reported by The Times of London , followed by the Guardian and the BBC, deepens the mystery.

The Times and BBC both reported that the call from the suspect to 999, the emergency number used in Britain, came almost an hour before a female farmer alerted authorities after seeing a group of masked men and three white vans.

The Times reported police were already on the scene when that later call from the local resident came in. The paper added police were investigating whether the suspect got cold feet or whether making such a call was part of the plan.

In their latest public statements, British police have indicated there may have been more than one trigger that sparked them into action.

“A police response was activated in the early hours of Sunday morning due to a range of information received, including a call from a member of the public about several vehicles acting suspiciously close to RAF Fairford,” Laurence Taylor, a senior counter-terrorism police officer, told reporters.

Taylor said “no improvised explosive devices were found” in vehicles used by the men, but that “a quantity of petrol was recovered.”

Police are planning to close down their investigative operations at Fairford by Wednesday, he added.

The suspects, who have been identified only as British nationals aged between 23 and 25 from the London area, were released on bail Monday. Taylor defended the move as an “investigative decision” following criticism from US President Donald Trump, who said “I wouldn’t have done that.”

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday the suspected terror plot “clearly involved the hands of a foreign actor,” after Trump said the suspects “might be” connected to Iran.

Iran has strongly denied any involvement. The UK has yet to publicly confirm any foreign link, though Taylor earlier said police were looking into it.

Trump has suggested authorities were already looking into the group before the arrests were made - however UK authorities have not yet confirmed that.

托比·谢泼德/路透社

据多家英国媒体报道，一名涉嫌策划袭击美国军方使用的英国空军基地的嫌疑人在被捕前不久曾报警。

周日清晨，五名男子因涉嫌爆炸犯罪和后来的恐怖主义指控在英格兰西部费尔福德附近的一个皇家空军基地被捕，美国 B-1 轰炸机曾从该基地对伊朗执行任务。

该事件在该地区引发了大规模的安全响应，并在大西洋两岸引起了恐慌，同时也招致了外国势力介入的指控。

五名男子很快获得保释，警方现已确认在现场的三辆货车中没有发现爆炸物，但调查仍在进行中。

《泰晤士报》率先报道了其中一名男子报警的消息，随后《卫报》和英国广播公司也进行了报道，这更加深了人们的疑惑。

《泰晤士报》和英国广播公司 (BBC) 都报道称，嫌疑人拨打英国紧急电话 999 的时间，比一名女农民看到一群蒙面男子和三辆白色货车后报警的时间早了将近一个小时。

《泰晤士报》报道称，警方在接到当地居民的后续报警电话时已经抵达现场。该报还补充说，警方正在调查嫌疑人是临阵退缩了，还是拨打这通电话是其预谋的一部分。

英国警方在最新的公开声明中表示，可能不止一个因素引发了他们的行动。

“由于收到一系列信息，包括一名公众人士举报多辆汽车在费尔福德皇家空军基地附近行为可疑，警方于周日凌晨启动了应对措施，”高级反恐警官劳伦斯·泰勒告诉记者。

泰勒表示，在这些人使用的车辆中“没有发现简易爆炸装置”，但“查获了一定数量的汽油”。

他补充说，警方计划于周三结束在费尔福德的调查行动。

嫌疑人身份尚未公开，仅知是来自伦敦地区的23至25岁的英国公民，他们于周一获得保释。此前，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普批评此举，称“我不会这样做”，泰勒则辩称这是“调查性决定”。

美国国务卿马可·卢比奥周二表示，这起疑似恐怖袭击阴谋“显然涉及外国势力”，此前特朗普曾表示，嫌疑人“可能”与伊朗有关。

伊朗强烈否认参与此事。英国尚未公开证实是否存在任何外国联系，不过泰勒此前曾表示警方正在调查此事。

特朗普曾暗示，在逮捕行动之前，当局就已经开始调查该组织——但英国当局尚未证实这一点。