British police yesterday said they had made a second arrest in connection with the bombing of a London Underground train, as their probe into the terror attack widened.
The 21-year-old man, who has not been named, was detained late on Saturday in Hounslow, on the western edge of the capital, a statement said.
Officers had earlier arrested an 18-year-old man over Friday’s attack at Parsons Green Station, which injured 30 people, and said they were hunting for more suspects.
British Home Secretary Amber Rudd yesterday said that police are trying to find out how the teenager “was radicalized.”
The bomb went off in a packed carriage and although the device is thought to have malfunctioned, it still caused a large explosion followed by what eyewitnesses said was a “fireball.”
It was Britain’s fifth terror attack in six months — a series that has claimed 35 lives.
The Islamic State (IS) group claimed responsibility for Friday’s explosion.
The first arrest on Saturday took place at the Dover ferry terminal — a main link to Europe. A “number of items” were recovered during the operation and the teenager is now in custody in London, officers said.
Police on Saturday also raided a home in Sunbury, a town west of London. Residents quoted in British media said the owners of the house were elderly foster parents.
Britain’s terror threat on Friday was raised to “critical,” indicating that another attack is feared, and soldiers have been deployed to guard key sites, including nuclear facilities.
The critical warning was last used in May after the deadly suicide attack at Manchester Arena, also claimed by IS.
Rudd also placed doubt on IS’ claim to being behind Friday’s incident.
“It is inevitable that so-called Islamic State will try to claim responsibility, but we have no evidence to suggest that yet,” she told the BBC.
Rudd had also earlier dismissed as “pure speculation” US President Donald Trump’s claim, made on Friday on Twitter, that a “loser terrorist” behind the attack was known to Scotland Yard.
The tweet had garnered a terse rebuke from British Prime Minister Theresa May, who said: “I never think it’s helpful for anybody to speculate on what is an ongoing investigation.”
The improvised device at Parsons Green, a quiet and well-off residential district, failed to detonate fully.
However, the blast inflicted flash burns on passengers and prompted dozens of others to flee in panic.
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