Two Latvian men have been arrested on suspicion of entering an RAF base in Cambridgeshire for a purpose prejudicial to the UK.
The men, aged 36 and 32, were detained inside the perimeter of RAF Molesworth in the early hours of Thursday, October 8, after security patrols discovered an abandoned vehicle near the base.
The United States uses the base extensively, with the facility hosting the Joint Intelligence Operations Centre Europe Analytic Centre.
Units of the US Air Force’s 423rd Air Base Group are also stationed at RAF Molesworth.
Both men, who were identified as residents in the UK, remain in police custody.
Counter Terrorism Policing is now leading the investigation, with officers searching two Peterborough addresses.
Commander Helen Flanagan, head of Counter Terrorism Policing London, said there was currently no evidence linking the incident to events at RAF Fairford last week.
She said: “Our investigation into this incident is at its very early stages.
“A big part of this is looking at any potential motivation as to why the men were present at the site, but I must stress we are keeping an open mind at this stage and enquiries are very much ongoing.”
Two Latvian migrants arrested for trespassing at US-run RAF base
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Security patrols located and arrested the pair at around 2am on Thursday, with the pair initially being detained on suspicion of trespass at a prohibited site and criminal damage.
They were then arrested under Section 4 of the National Security Act 2023, which concerns entering a prohibited place for a purpose prejudicial to the UK.
Police recovered the abandoned vehicle and took it to a nearby police station for further examination. Concerns prompted the deployment of specialist explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) officers.
Precautionary cordons were then set up, affecting local roads in the Glatton area, including part of the A1.
Both men, residents in the UK, remain in police custody
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Counter Terrorism Police said there was currently no evidence linking the incident to events at RAF Fairford
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Police arrest British-Iranian on suspicion of terror offence following RAF Fairford incidentPolice arrested five other British nationals on Sunday, September 27, after three suspicious vehicles were reported outside RAF Fairford in the early hours. Those five were later bailed.
A sixth man, a dual UK-Iranian national, was later arrested on Thursday, October 1. He also remains on bail.
Last week, Andy Burnham told GB News there were “strong indications“ that the Islamic Republic had played a part in the suspected plot.
British officials have admitted there was “an ongoing high tempo of threat from Iran to the UK, and it is logical that US airbases would be pretty high on any targeting list”.
The incident at RAF Fairford prompted the US to withdraw a fleet of heavy bombers stationed at the base.
Throughout the war with Iran, around a dozen B-1 Lancer aircraft flew sorties from RAF Fairford to deliver “defensive strikes”.
US Vice President JD Vance told reporters Iran is doing what it has “done for 49 years… which is engage in acts of terrorism against the US and against a lot of other people”.
He also said an “abundance of caution” had prompted the removal of the US bombers from RAF Fairford.
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