Authors: John Mannion
‘I know, Theo, you’re a real stud muffin,’ Lisa said grimacing. ‘Thank you for your intellectual input. How is it that, even in such tragic and utterly horrific circumstances, sex seems to feature so prominently in your thought processes?’ Theo didn’t reply. He didn’t understand where she was coming from.
He parked up on Edgware Road, placing a ‘Police on Duty’ card in his car window to stave off the ‘vultures’ – the traffic wardens forever circling the streets in central London looking for victims, swooping down from nowhere on unsuspecting motorists. They got out of the car and looked up and down the busy Edgware Road, individually taking in the layout of the road and its Middle Eastern café and restaurant scene.
‘If we start over at the Blue Nile, where our man got into his cab,’ suggested Theo.
The road was very busy so Theo, unwilling to wait as a mere mortal or find a suitable crossing point, stepped out into the road, holding up his right hand. Traffic squealed to a halt, irritated drivers honked their horns and shouted obscenities. Theo had forgotten he wasn’t in uniform. Lisa was mortified as she followed behind him.
They entered the Blue Nile, where groups of mainly elderly gentlemen of Middle Eastern appearance sat drinking from small cups of coffee and puffing on those long pipes, which always made Theo think of a drug den. They showed the proprietor their Police credentials.
‘Have you seen this man?’ asked Theo, proffering the picture of the man they wanted to identify.
The elderly proprietor shrugged his shoulders and grunted, barely glancing at the photo. Theo stared at him.
‘Shall we try that again?’ he said, once more holding the photo in front of the proprietor.
‘I no speak Inglish very good. Not understand.’
‘Look here, Sir,’ said Theo disparagingly. ‘A lot of people died yesterday, not many miles from here, and we need to identify the man in this photo. He is among the dead, and we need to contact relatives and friends. I can tell you that your employees and other people present yesterday evening on these very premises, have told our colleagues that this man has frequented these premises on a number of occasions over recent weeks. How about you take another look, ‘’Sir”? I may have to contact The Border Agency, otherwise, who may be able to help us identify him from their records of people living around here. So if you don’t want them nosing around, maybe you could help me. What do you think?’
Lisa was not too keen on these sort of tactics. She preferred to build up a rapport with people she was interviewing; getting them on side, gaining their trust. But she could appreciate that in these kind of circumstances, where time is of the essence, needs must. However, as she stood there looking at Theo and the stressed look on the elderly proprietor’s face, and the faces of the customers in the restaurant all staring in their direction, she remembered something a colleague had once told her about Theo. The colleague had said that the young East Ender had been a member of a street gang made up of white and black youths which had frequently, or so it was suspected, been involved in so called ‘Paki bashing’ attacks on Asian youths. Such racially motivated attacks on young Asians were not uncommon by mixed Black/White street gangs.
The old man reluctantly relented and responded in broken English, ‘Now I think about it, I have seen this man. He has, I think, been here once or twice. I have never seen him seated in my restaurant, Officer. He makes an order and takes his food with him. He is alone. Never with anyone. I don’t know if he lives local.’
‘Thank you for your cooperation,’ said Lisa. Theo nodded in acknowledgement to the elderly proprietor as they left.
They spent the next couple of hours on Edgware Road, visiting a number of premises without any significant leads being revealed.
It was almost noon when they entered the Istanbul Café, a few blocks down from the Blue Nile. The middle-aged male proprietor greeted the two of them as they entered his café. The two officers showed him their badges and once again launched into the questions that they had asked so many times that morning, with varying responses. This time the man was very helpful. Indeed he was eager to assist.
‘Yes, Officers, he has been here a number of times in the past month or so. He appeared around here from I don’t know where. He’s not local. Asks a lot of questions about places around here. Directions to places. You know what I mean?’ He paused, looking into the faces of the officers, as if seeking confirmation that they understood. Then he continued, ‘I had to go out one evening. He had just left with his order. As I walked down the road in the direction he had taken just a couple of minutes earlier, I saw he was just a little ahead of me. We were both going in the direction of Marble Arch. I saw him entering a building across the road, a few blocks from here. He went into an entrance, just to the left of a small Persian carpet shop which has living accommodation above it. I don’t know its name. I hope this is of some help to you, Officers. Would you like something? It’s on the house, Officers.’ The man gestured at the food and drink available.
Theo’s eyes lit up but before he could reply, Lisa responded, ‘Thank you very much for your assistance. But no thanks.’ A disappointed Theo looked at Lisa as they left the café.
Once outside Theo said, ‘Let’s take a discreet look, then call it in.’
They both strolled in the direction of the premises identified by the café owner. Once they were directly opposite, they stopped and chatted in a casual way, as would any young couple out walking. They pointed in different directions up and down the street as if lost, but all the while they were both taking in the scene around them, with particular attention to the premises identified to them. They then continued casually on their way, entering an alleyway a few yards down the road. Theo pulled out his mobile phone and called Ed.
‘Hi, Sarge, it’s Theo. I think we’ve got something. A café owner has identified our man and the place where he thinks he may live. It’s living accommodation above a small carpet shop on Edgware Road. Access is through an open entrance to the left of the shop and up a flight of stairs. What do you want us to do?’
A short pause and then Ed replied, ‘I’m going to have a word with the DI. Just keep a discreet watch on the premises for now. I’ll get back to you soon.’
‘What did the Sarge say?’ asked Lisa as Theo put his mobile phone away.
‘He wants us to act natural, but keep an eye on the place. I think that’s code for having an intimate lunch.’
Lisa groaned inwardly – natural and Theo weren’t words that sat easily in the same sentence for her.
Ed passed the information received from his two officers on the Edgware Road up the chain of command. His first point of contact was his boss, DI Russ Ward, and from there the information travelled rapidly to the ears of DAC Braithwaite, Head of Counter Terrorism Command. It was decided that, because of the urgency of the situation, mounting any kind of surveillance operation was not an option. The decision was made that there were enough grounds, under the circumstances, to stage a raid on the Edgware Road address suspected to have been used by the Underground train bomber. There were two other apartments in the building, which would also have to be treated as suspect premises and, therefore, searched.
While they waited for the cavalry to arrive, Theo and Lisa had found more comfortable surroundings from which to keep an eye on the building across the street. In the warmth of a small café just opposite, they sat sipping warm cups of coffee, their mobile phones switched on, waiting expectantly for further instructions. Conscious of the need to look ‘normal’ Theo began banal chatter – teasing and joking. Lisa played the part but inwardly hoped the wait wouldn’t be too long.
Behind the idle chatter, dark thoughts played on Theo’s mind which he kept to himself. Thoughts of such intensity Lisa would never have dreamed Theo would be capable of having. As he looked around the faces in the café and out of the window at the predominantly Middle Eastern restaurants and passers-by of Arab appearance, he reflected back to the days of his youth in the East End of London. How he and his mates, then in their early to mid-teens, would often find themselves in verbal and, sometimes, physical conflict with local Asian youths. As he grew into his late teens he came to feel that there was no rational reason for this hostility and, in time, it faded. After all, he reasoned, they may eat different food and have strange religious beliefs but, when all was said and done, they were just people trying to get by.
However, his contact with them since joining the Police Service had resurrected his hostility, only this time he felt his emotions were completely rational. He was a Londoner. He didn’t like these people, with their strange ways, coming here trying to impose their alien beliefs and culture. His attitude was they should be grateful to be here and if they didn’t like it, they should go somewhere else.
DAC Braithwaite had personally taken command of the operation on the premises on Edgware Road. He assembled the heads of the various units which would be taking part, these included officers from CO19 Specialist Firearms Command and officers from the Metropolitan Police Bomb Squad, who would be on hand to deal with any explosives that may be found at the premises. DI Ward and Ed were also present to update everyone on the progress of the investigation.
At 3pm uniformed officers from Paddington and Marylebone Police Stations sealed off Edgware Road from Marble Arch at one end and the junction of Old Marylebone Road at the other end, including all side roads leading onto the Edgware Road in between. The assault team assembled in Forset Street, a narrow side street just off the Edgware Road, awaiting the ‘Go’ order.
Theo and Lisa had been kept up-to-date with the preparations by Ed, who had been calling Theo on his mobile phone. They had left the café and were now back in the alley opposite the suspect premises.
Ed called, ‘Theo. Any activity at the address?’
‘No, Sarge, no sign of life over there.’
‘OK, we will be making our move in five minutes. Keep me up-to-date with any changes.’
The Edgware Road had become still in the last ten minutes or so. The traffic flow had now stopped and pedestrian movement had all but ceased. There were a few people attempting to leave premises near the suspect’s address, but Theo and Lisa could see uniformed officers containing any further pedestrian activity inside these premises. Armed CO19 officers could be seen stealthily approaching the target address on foot, hugging the wall of the building.
At precisely 3.30pm, Theo and Lisa heard, ‘Go, Go, Go!’ crackle over their police radios. There was a sudden flurry of activity.
The CO19 officers rushed the entrance at the side of the small carpet shop and dashed up the stairs leading to the apartments, as police vehicles screeched to a halt outside. Theo could see the DAC, the DI, Ed and Stuart decamping from their vehicles amongst the maelstrom. The armed officers gained entry to the three apartments simultaneously using battering rams, as the element of surprise was essential for the operation to succeed. The CO19 officers shouted, ‘Armed police’, as they entered, moving swiftly from room to room in each of the apartments in search of any occupants. None were present.
The armed officers, having confirmed the premises were unoccupied and that there was no danger of armed resistance, stepped back to allow other officers access to the apartments. The Bomb Squad, with their sniffer dogs trained to find any sign of explosives, were the next to enter. With tails wagging, the dogs ran excitedly through the accommodation. Each apartment consisted of a tiny bathroom, small kitchen, a bedroom big enough for a single bed and wardrobe, and a box-size living room, containing a worn two-seat sofa and equally threadbare armchair. The search came up with no trace of explosives ever having been present in the accommodation.
As soon as the Bomb Squad officers exited, Forensics Officers entered to begin their examination of the premises. The detectives, DAC Braithwaite, DI Ward, Ed and Stuart, followed them in, ever mindful that it was a possible scene of crime.
Two of the apartments visited were typical of those occupied by young male students. The apartments were untidy, with clothing left on the floor. Waste bins were overflowing and literature of a distinctly non-religious kind was found.
Ed commented, ‘Living the dream.’
In the third apartment, the occupant had kept his accommodation neat and tidy. It was spartan. What little clothing he owned was in the wardrobe and there was no visible sign left behind to identify the occupant. DAC Braithwaite instructed the Forensic Officers to ‘go through this apartment with a fine tooth comb’.
The forensics team set about their task, lifting fingerprints and examining any items where DNA could be found, bagging it up for closer examination in the lab. DAC
Braithwaite approached the senior forensics officer at the scene.
‘I need feedback on DNA, fingerprints, anything, as soon as possible.’
He turned to DI Ward. ‘I need close scrutiny of the CCTV footage from around here at about the time the cab driver picked up his fare. Get the cabbie in again and confirm that there were no stops on the way. See if he remembers anything else. If the young man living at this address is our man, he didn’t keep any explosives here. Did he store them somewhere else? Where did he pick them up? Get back to me ASAP on this.’
With that he left to head back to the Yard to update the Commissioner.
DI Ward turned to Ed. ‘Let’s get to it, Ed. Get somebody to speak to the landlord and check him and the two students out. See if they can help us, and explain that the intrusion was a necessary evil to protect them and every other citizen from harm. Let’s face it, nobody wants a terrorist living next door, eh?’ And off he went.
Ed turned to his team. ‘Theo, you and I back to the Yard. More CCTV footage, I’m afraid. See if we can trace an explosives delivery boy. Stuart and Lisa, speak to the landlord. He’s in his carpet store. His two tenants have just been escorted in there as well.’ With that Ed and Theo left the scene.