Man arrested in Wigan in connection with arena bombing remains in custody

A man arrested in Wigan on suspicion of terrorism remains in custody.
Police swoop on a terror suspect in WiganPolice swoop on a terror suspect in Wigan
Police swoop on a terror suspect in Wigan

Greater Manchester Police have today released a list of people arrested in connection with the Manchester arena attacks on Monday night.

The 33-year-old man was arrested on Wednesday after armed police pounced on Upper Dicconson Street.

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He is one of 10 people arrested so far, two have been released without charge.

Handout photo courtesy of Paul Redrobe of police as they cordon off an area, which stretched on to Wigan Lane, near the Wigan Royal InfirmaryHandout photo courtesy of Paul Redrobe of police as they cordon off an area, which stretched on to Wigan Lane, near the Wigan Royal Infirmary
Handout photo courtesy of Paul Redrobe of police as they cordon off an area, which stretched on to Wigan Lane, near the Wigan Royal Infirmary

A search of an address in St Helens, concluded on Friday morning, police said, although it remained unclear how it was connected to the atrocity at Manchester Arena.

In Moss Side, a cordon was in place around the Fade Away barbershop in Princess Road, near to the junction of Claremont Road, which neighbours said had been closed since Monday’s attack.

It is understood that an armed response unit arrived in Princess Road in the early hours of the morning and that the shutter to the barbershop was cut open at about 5.15am.

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Police have yet to confirm if the raid was in connection with the ongoing investigation into the suicide bombing.

Handout photo courtesy of Paul Redrobe of police as they cordon off an area, which stretched on to Wigan Lane, near the Wigan Royal InfirmaryHandout photo courtesy of Paul Redrobe of police as they cordon off an area, which stretched on to Wigan Lane, near the Wigan Royal Infirmary
Handout photo courtesy of Paul Redrobe of police as they cordon off an area, which stretched on to Wigan Lane, near the Wigan Royal Infirmary

Greater Manchester Police previously hailed the “significant” arrests made and the “very important” items seized in raids as they attempt to close the net on Abedi’s suspected terror network.

Elsewhere, security minister Ben Wallace told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme there was no specific threat against an individual event at the moment.

He also said that standby notices issued to NHS staff - which means health organisations have to be on alert in the run-up to the bank holiday in case of another attack - were precautionary.

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Whitehall sources revealed on Thursday that security services are managing around 500 active investigations relating to 3,000 people of interest.

Abedi was known to security services before his deadly assault, sources previously confirmed.

“All those people are in the mix and they have to be looked at,” said Mr Wallace.

“And then below the 3,000 is another 12,000 people who have in the past come to our attention and haven’t necessarily shown signs of doing anything at all, or no longer posing a risk.

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“All of that is predominately underpinned by intelligence, which as I’m sure you will understand and the courts certainly understand, unfortunately the hardest part is we’ve got to convert intelligence into evidence if we actually want to deprive people of their liberty or take certain steps.”

The General Election campaign has relaunched after three days - with Jeremy Corbyn bringing the issue of terrorism into the political arena.

The Labour leader was expected to launch a veiled attack on the Conservatives for underfunding the police service at a time of heightened threat, while linking Britain’s overseas military campaigns with terrorism at home.

With Britain still braced for an “imminent” attack, Home Secretary Amber Rudd said she expected the “critical” assessment of the terror threat will be in place for the coming days.

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A relative of the 22-year-old bomber said he had felt increasing frustration at his treatment in the UK, heightened after a friend was fatally knifed in what he perceived to be a religious hate crime.

She added Abedi began referring to others in the country as “infidels” who were “unjust to Arabs”.

Libyan authorities, who are questioning his parents and siblings, claimed he made a final phone call to his mother on the eve of the attack, in which he said: “Forgive me.”

Music fans were targeted at an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena in the worst terrorist attack on British soil since the July 7 bombing in London in 2005.

The full list is:

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1: 23/05/17: 24-year-old man arrested in Whalley Range on suspicion of offences contrary to the terrorism act. Remains in custody.

2: 24/05/17: 24-year-old man arrested in Fallowfield on suspicion of offences contrary to the terrorism act. Remains in custody.

3: 24/05/17: 21-year-old man arrested in Fallowfield on suspicion of offences contrary to the terrorism act. Remains in custody.

4: 24/05/17: 18-year-old man arrested in Fallowfield on suspicion of offences contrary to the terrorism act. Remains in custody.

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5: 24/05/17: 33-year-old man arrested in Wigan on suspicion of offences contrary to the terrorism act. Remains in custody.

6: 24/05/17: 22-year-old man arrested in Nuneaton on suspicion of offences contrary to the terrorism act. Remains in custody.

7: 24/05/17: 34-year-old woman arrested in Blackley on suspicion of offences contrary to the terrorism act. Released without charge.

8: 25/05/17: 38-year-old man arrested in Blackley on suspicion of offences contrary to the terrorism act. Remains in custody.

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9: 25/05/17: 16-year-old boy arrested in Withington on suspicion of offences contrary to the terrorism act. Released without charge.

10: 30-year-old man arrested in Moss Side on suspicion of offences contrary to the terrorism act. Remains in custody.

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