THE head of the anti-terrorist squad last night appealed for help from
the public after two loaded Kalashnikov semi-automatic rifles were found
in a car stopped after a high-speed chase.
He also released a picture of the arrested driver of the Cortina car,
now undergoing forensic tests.
Commander George Churchill-Coleman, head of Scotland Yard's
Anti-Terrorist Branch, said: ''It is absolutely essential we find out
where this man was living, and quickly.''
He was described as 18 to 20 years old, 5ft 8in, stocky, weighing
about 12 stone, with short, black, neat hair and a pale, fresh
complexion. He is said to speak with a soft Irish accent.
He was wearing a blue denim jacket, grey and green striped
short-sleeved shirt, a white tee shirt with Jack Charlton and Eire team
markings, dark blue cotton trousers, black shoes with laces and buckle,
and white sports socks with yellow and green trim.
The man was captured and arrested as he tried to escape on foot after
being chased in the Cortina by a patrol car in Lordship Lane, Tottenham,
north London.
He is being held under the Prevention of Terrorism Act at a central
London police station. Pictures in such situations are not normally
released.
The car was bought for #500 cash from a private owner in north London
in March. It was advertised for sale by a notice in the vehicle's window
while it was parked in the street. Police are not saying so far if there
is an IRA involvement.
Police also arrested, but later released without charge, two men in
connection with a red Peugeot which was believed to have been following
the Cortina.
Scotland Yard said that the red Peugeot had been eliminated from
police inquiries.
During the hunt for the Peugeot the police closed a public house in
Shepherds Bush, west London, and sealed off roads after a similar car
was spotted in the car park.
The hunt for the Peugeot believed originally to have been connected
with the Cortina, started immediately after the Soviet AK47 rifles were
found early yesterday morning.
It was said to have an Ulster registration number.
A spokesman at the Pavilion public house in Wood Lane, who declined to
give his name, said: ''The police came into the pub at about lunchtime
and asked for it to be closed.''
One witness told BBC TV's Six O'Clock News that police took away two
men from the public house after the Peugeot was found.
''The inspector came on the Tannoy, called out the registration number
of the vehicle and two youngish guys stood up and admitted owning the
car and the officers took them away,'' he said.
Members of the public who recognise the arrested man or know where he
has been living or working or know anything about the Cortina are asked
to contact the anti-terrorist branch on 071 230 1212.
The arms discovery came after a 3am chase involving a patrolling
police car and the Cortina. The Cortina eventually stopped near a
junction and the driver fled. He was pursued and arrested.
Police at the scene described the guns as ''freshly dug up'' and said
both guns were loaded and ready for use.
Residents said they were woken in the early hours by police and told
to move to the back of their homes or leave because of fears that the
car was carrying a bomb.
The urgency of Commander Churchill-Coleman's appeal suggests police
think locating the address or place of work of the man held by police
may lead to a terrorist lair.
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