British police arrest five terror suspects near nuclear site

[News_Editor]

British police arrest five terror suspects near nuclear site

2011-05-03 20:14:14 GMT+7 (ICT)

SEASCALE, ENGLAND (BNO NEWS) -- British nuclear police on late Monday afternoon arrested five terror suspects near a nuclear facility in northwest England, officials said on Tuesday.

The five men were arrested by officers from the Civil Nuclear Constabulary, which is tasked with providing law enforcement and security at civil nuclear installations, after conducting a vehicle stop near Sellafield.

Sellafield, which is previously known as Windscale, is a facility that is responsible for decommissioning and reprocessing nuclear waste and fuel manufacturing on behalf of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. It is located near the Seascale village in Cumbria.

The statement from Cumbria Constabulary said the men, all in their 20s, were arrested under Section 41 of the Terrorism Act 2000. This section allows police to detain a person for 48 hours without charges if there is a suspicion that person is a terrorist.

"[The men] were taken to police custody in Carlisle overnight and [were] being transported to Manchester this morning," the statement said. "The investigation is being led by the North West Counter Terrorism Unit."

British officials said the arrests were not pre-planned or the result of intelligence but merely after a concern was raised during the routine stop. It was not immediately clear if police had found anything on the men or in their vehicle.

A statement from Greater Manchester Police said they are also not aware of any connection to recent events in Pakistan, referring to the U.S. operation that killed al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-05-03