One of the five men arrested near RAF Fairford rang 999 himself at around 12.45am on Sunday — almost an hour before a local farmer separately dialled 999 after spotting three vans and a group of masked men blocking a lane near the airbase.
The farmer, who drove home from a party to find the road near Whelford blocked, told the BBC it was “pure luck” she had spotted them. She described a “large group of hooded and masked men” and three suspicious vans — and believes her call may have foiled whatever the group had planned.
“I believe that my 999 call foiled whatever plans they had,” she said.
Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, who leads Counter Terrorism Policing, said the armed police response in the early hours had been driven by “a range of information” — not by the farmer’s call alone.
What the searches found
The five men — all UK nationals aged between 23 and 25 — were first arrested on suspicion of explosives offences and later under terrorism legislation. Searches of the three white vans turned up several barrels, one containing petrol, with the others empty. No explosive devices were found.
The vans were marked with the logo of a legitimate fuel transit company, which has since denied owning them.
Police also searched the men’s home addresses — four in Westminster and one in Camden — and those searches are now complete. A bomb disposal team was deployed and a 400-metre cordon went up around the scene on Sunday morning, with around 85 nearby homes evacuated as a precaution. Residents have since been allowed to return, and police expect the remaining cordons to be lifted by Wednesday.
All five were released on bail on Monday. Police described the decision as an “investigative decision” “grounded in experience and strategy”, saying bail conditions were “subject to stringent conditions on their movement and contact with others”.
The case took a political turn on Wednesday, when Prime Minister Andy Burnham said there were “strong indications” Iran was involved in the suspected plot — a claim Tehran has denied. US officials have also weighed in, with the White House saying it was “surprised” the men were bailed.
No one has been charged and the investigation is continuing.
