British police arrest man at Dover in London bomb manhunt

LONDON — British police arrested an 18-year-old man in the port of Dover and raided a property in a small town outside London on Saturday (Sept 16) as they hunted for whoever planted a bomb on a commuter train that injured 30 people a day earlier.

Prime Minister Theresa May put Britain on the highest security level of “critical” late on Friday, meaning another attack may be imminent, and deployed soldiers and armed police to strategic sites.

In what police called a “significant” development, at about 7.50 am (0650 GMT) officers arrested a man in Dover, from where passenger ferries sail to France. Five hours later they raided a property in Sunbury, a commuter town southwest of London, and evacuated nearby premises as a precaution.

Pictures on social media showed police in a nondescript residential street in Sunbury, in the county of Surrey.

“We have made a significant arrest in our investigation this morning,” said Mr Neil Basu, senior national co-ordinator for counter-terrorism policing.

“This arrest will lead to more activity from our officers,” he said, speaking before details of the Sunbury raid was confirmed. “For strong investigative reasons we will not give any more details on the man we arrested at this stage.”

In what was the fifth major terrorism attack in Britain this year, the home-made bomb shot flames through a packed commuter train during the Friday morning rush hour in west London but apparently failed to detonate fully. REUTERS