Liverpool terrorism blast: Arrested men released, bomber details revealed, taxi driver a ‘hero’

The four men arrested under the Terrorism Act in relation to the car explosion outside Liverpool’s Women’s Hospital on Sunday have been released without charge.

A taxi exploded and then burst into flames at 10.59 in the morning, killing the bomb-carrying passenger, who has been identified by police as 32-year-old Emad Al Swealmeen.

The taxi driver, named locally as David Perry, was injured in the blast and declared a hero by Liverpool Mayor Joanne Anderson for “diverting what could have been an absolutely awful disaster at the hospital.”

Merseyside Police and Counter Terrorism North West cordoned off Rutland Avenue and Sutcliffe Street in the city, arresting three men on Sunday and a further individual on Monday.

Assistant Chief Constable Russ Jackson revealed today that the the address in Rutland Avenue where Al Swealmeen was picked up by the taxi has become central to the investigation and “important evidence” has been recovered.

Officers carried out a controlled explosion as a precaution at Sefton Park on Monday evening as part of the on-going investigation.

The UK’s terror threat level has now been raised from “substantial” to “severe”, Home Secretary Priti Patel has confirmed.

How the events unfolded

On Sunday morning, the local taxi driver picked up a fare from the Rutland Avenue area of Liverpool, who asked to be taken to Liverpool Women’s Hospital, which is about ten minutes away.

As the taxi approached the hospital it exploded and was engulfed by flames. Remarkably, the taxi driver escaped from the cab.

Merseyside Police, Ambulance and Fire and Rescue Services were quickly on the scene.

Army ordinance disposal officers also arrived to examine the area and confirmed the ignition of an explosive device had taken place.

They concluded the bomb was brought into the cab by the Al Swealmeen.

Arrests and searches made in Liverpool

Police officers proceeded to cordon off two residential streets and the hospital as enquiries continued into the incident on Sunday.

Assistant Chief Constable Russ Jackson, head of Counter Terrorism North West, said officers subsequently raided two addresses, the first in Sutcliffe Street in the Kensington area of Liverpool where three men - aged 21, 26 and 29 - were arrested.

On Monday morning a further man - aged 20 - at a different address in Kensington was arrested under Section 41 of the Terrorism Act.

The Sutcliffe Street address was searched overnight and several other addresses will be searched today and, potentially, in the coming days.

An address at Rutland Avenue in Kensington was also searched and “significant items have been found”. A cordon is still in place in the area and eight families have been evacuated.

On Monday, all four men were released without charge.

ACC Jackson, said: “Following interviews with the arrested men, we are satisfied with the accounts they have provided.”

What do we know about the bomber?

Counter terrorism detectives leading the investigation into the explosion have confirmed the identity of the passenger who died as 32-year-old Emad Al Swealmeen.

An asylum seeker from the Middle East, he arrived in the UK in 2014 and was also known as Enzo Almeni. He converted to Christianity at Liverpool Cathedral in 2017.

He was not known to MI5 or counter-terror police prior to Sunday’s events.

Lieutenant Colonel Malcolm Hitchcott, who was in the army for 25 years and worked as a Eucharistic Lay Minister and Assistant Leader of the Iranian Ministry at the cathedral, posted photographs on Facebook showing Al Swealmeen at a service in March 2017.

Lt Col Hitchcott and his wife Elizabeth, a Christian couple who live in Liverpool, spoke to ITV News and said they took Al Swealmeen into their home in 2017 and he lived with them for eight months.

The couple described their shock about Sunday’s incident, Mrs Hitchcott said: “What a waste of a life. But the one thing I suppose to be thankful for is that he did not kill anyone else.”

“I mean he lived here for eight months, and we were living cheek by jowl. There was never any suggestion of anything amiss,” Lt Col Hitchcott added.

The couple said Al Swealmeen had taken a cake decorating course and was obsessed with motor racing. He had changed his name to Enzo Almeni after Enzo Ferrari, the founder of car company Ferrari.

Lt Col Hitchcott also said that Al Swealmeen had previously been sectioned under the Mental Health Act and spent around six months in a “mental institution” after being involved in an incident in the centre of Liverpool which “involved a bridge and a knife.”

Court papers from a 2015 appeal by an Iranian asylum seeker who was seeking refugee status in the UK show he was supported by Lt Col Hitchcott.

The papers state that Lt Col Hitchcott scrutinised the behaviour of worshippers, watching how they behaved outside of formal services and meetings and if this was found to be ‘incongruous with their claim to be Christians’ he would not support their asylum claims.

Detective Chief Inspector Andrew Meeks from Greater Manchester Police said: “We believe he [Al Swealmeen] lived at the Sutcliffe Street address for some time and had recently rented the Rutland Avenue address.

“Our focus is the Rutland Avenue address where we have continued to recover significant items.

“We continue to appeal for any information about this incident and now that we have released his name any information that the public may have about Al Swealmeen no matter how small may be of great assistance to us.’’

Al Swealmeen was picked up at Rutland Avenue in a taxi and driven the ten minutes to Liverpool Women’s Hospital where the bomb exploded.

The fire service confirmed that the passenger was found dead inside the taxi.

Assistant Chief Constable Russ Jackson added: “Our enquiries indicate that an improvised explosive device has been manufactured and our assumption so far is that this was built by the passenger in the taxi.”

What do we know about the taxi driver?

Named locally as David Perry, he is believed to be a driver for Delta Taxis and is now at home “resting with his family” after initially being admitted to hospital.

CCTV footage shows the taxi driver escaping from the car after the explosion and before the vehicle burst into flames.

“He is without a doubt lucky to be alive,” his wife Rachel posted on Facebook.

“The explosion happened whilst he was in the car and how he managed to escape is an utter miracle.”

Mayor of Liverpool Joanne Anderson told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that the taxi driver had locked the doors on the passenger to keep him in the cab.

“The taxi driver, in his heroic efforts, has managed to divert what could have been an absolutely awful disaster at the hospital,” she said.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson also credited the driver for his conduct when his car exploded.

Mr Johnson said: “It does look as though the taxi driver in question did behave with incredible presence of mind and bravery.”

A Facebook fundraising page has been set up for Mr Perry by the Liverpool ‘taxi family’ and has already raised nearly £20,000.

What was the motivation behind the attack?

It is still not clear why the explosion was planned but ACC Jackson said one line the police were investigating is a possible connection to Remembrance Sunday commemorations in the city.

The bomb went off at 10:59, one minute before a two-minute silence was due to commence at a nearby service at Liverpool Cathedral.

“We cannot at this time draw any connection with this but it is a line of inquiry we are pursuing,” he said.

“It is not clear at this time what the motivation for this incident is,” he said. “The reason why he took it [the bomb] to the Women’s Hospital is unknown, as is the reason for its sudden explosion.”

ACC Jackson provided a further update on Tuesday, saying: “There is a considerable way to go to understand how this incident was planned, prepared for and how it happened.

“We are gaining a better understanding by the hour but it is likely to be some time, perhaps many weeks until we are confident on our understanding of what has taken place.

“In the meantime, we have considerable resources and staff deployed to understand how this device was built and who if anyone else was involved. If the evidence takes us to the involvement of others, further arrests will quickly take place.”

Advice for Liverpudlians

Merseyside Police Chief Constable Serena Kennedy said although there was no specific threat to the area she had asked for police patrols to be increased across Merseyside.

She said: “Merseyside Police will continue to liaise with community groups, community leaders, partner agencies and individuals in the coming days and weeks to make sure any concerns are addressed and ensuring that we provide the best possible service to local people.

“There will also be an increased and visible police presence on the streets of Merseyside and I would encourage people to engage with my officers and raise any concerns they may have.”

Anyone who has any information should call 0161 856 1027 quoting Liverpool Womens Hospital Incident.

Liverpool Riverside MP Kim Johnson told the House of Commons there had been an increase in hate crime against Muslims in Liverpool following the blast.

She said: “Incidents such as these always provoke a spike of race hate. My team have been hearing of incidents where women in hijabs are facing abuse.”

The Mayor of Liverpool Joanne Anderson, Chief Constable Kennedy and Merseyside’s Police and Crime Commissioner Emily Spurrell meet with residents in Kensington on Tuesday to reassure locals.

“We continue to have a really strong community here,” the Chief Constable said.

UK’s terror threat level increased

In the fallout from Sunday’s car explosion, the UK’s terrorism threat level has been increased to severe.

“This means that a terrorist attack is highly likely, although there is no intelligence to suggest that an attack is imminent,” Home Secretary Priti Patel said.

She added that the terror threat level had been raised because there had been two attacks in the space of a month.

Speaking to broadcasters, she said: “The Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre, Jtac, are now increasing the United Kingdom’s threat level from substantial to severe.

“And there’s a reason for that, and that reason is because what we saw yesterday is the second incident in a month.”

In October, Conservative MP Sir David Amess was stabbed to death at his constituency surgery in Essex in an attack that was also declared a terrorist incident.