Counter terror police arrest man in Cheshire after traces of uranium found on package at Heathrow

Anti-terrorism police arrested a man in Cheshire as part of an ongoing investigation linked to the discovery of traces of uranium within a cargo package at Heathrow Airport.

Police have assured that the incident does not appear to be linked to any direct threat to the public, but investigations are ongoing to ensure this is definitely the case.

The package, which contained scrap metal, was found to be contaminated with a very small amount of uranium during a routine screening on December 29, 2022.

Officers from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command were contacted by Border Force colleagues at Heathrow.

On the morning of Saturday, January 14, officers attended an address in Cheshire, supported by colleagues from Cheshire Police and Counter Terrorism Police North West.

A man in his 60s was arrested on suspicion of an offence under Section 9 of the Terrorism Act 2006.

He was taken to a police station in North West England, and was released on bail until a date in April.

Specialist officers also carried out a search at the same address at which the man was arrested. The search is now complete and no material that could be a threat to the public was found.

Commander Richard Smith, who leads the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command, said: “The discovery of what was a very small amount of uranium within a package at Heathrow Airport is clearly of concern, but it shows the effectiveness of the procedures and checks in place with our partners to detect this type of material.

“Our priority since launching our investigation has been to ensure that there is no linked direct threat to the public. To this end, we are following every possible line of enquiry available to us, which has led us to making this arrest over the weekend.

“I want to be clear that despite making this arrest, and based on what we currently know, this incident still does not appear to be linked to any direct threat to the public.

“However, detectives are continuing with their enquiries to ensure this is definitely the case.”