LONDON — Three vans at the center of a suspected terror plot near RAF Fairford contained no explosive devices, British counterterrorism police said Tuesday, according to The Telegraph.
Laurence Taylor, head of Counter Terrorism Policing, said gasoline was recovered from the vehicles, the newspaper reported.
Five British men, ages 23 to 25, were arrested Sunday on suspicion of terrorism and explosives offenses in connection with the incident at the Gloucestershire air base, which hosts U.S. Air Force bombers. They were released on bail Monday and remain under investigation.
Taylor acknowledged the decision to release them would surprise many people but said it was an investigative decision grounded in experience and careful consideration of police powers, The Telegraph reported. He said the vans were examined with help from military and forensic experts and that the men must follow strict conditions. Detectives have finished searching several properties in London, the newspaper said.
The suspects include a 24-year-old from Camden; three men, ages 23, 24 and 25, from Westminster; and a 24-year-old from Willesden, according to The Telegraph.
The newspaper reported that 85 households in Whelford, a village next to the base, were evacuated Sunday and that Army bomb-disposal specialists were sent to examine the vans. Residents photographed the suspects handcuffed and shirtless on the ground, surrounded by armed officers, it said.
A farmer driving home from a party in the early hours Sunday saw the vans and masked men and alerted police, The Telegraph reported.
Some residents called the police response a "farce" and questioned how long officers took to arrive, the newspaper said. Gloucestershire Constabulary said it responded appropriately.
After it emerged that no explosives were found, residents accused police of scaremongering, The Telegraph reported. Emma Wilson, 35, told the newspaper that residents were now living in fear and looking out for bombs because of what police had disclosed. A local farmer whose land borders the base told the newspaper that authorities would not have let vans carrying explosives drive so close to the airfield.
Taylor said Monday outside Scotland Yard that investigators were keeping an open mind. He said lines of inquiry include activity by proxies, or by people working for a foreign state, knowingly or not.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox News, without providing evidence, that the situation clearly involved a foreign actor. President Donald Trump said in the Oval Office that he would not have released the men on bail, though he praised British cooperation.
Iran's Revolutionary Guard threatened in July to attack RAF Fairford, saying any base used to strike Tehran was a legitimate target, The Telegraph reported. The newspaper also noted that Iran and Russia have used criminal proxies for threatening activity in Britain, and that MI5 Director General Ken McCallum warned last year that more than 20 Iran-backed plots had been foiled in 12 months.
