‘So far as the hostages go, tell them we want to make sure that they’re physically and mentally well,’ said Kamran. ‘Take them to the nearest police station and get medics to give them the once-over. But keep them separate from each other. I don’t want them comparing stories. While you’re doing that, have them interviewed, but gently. Get them to tell us exactly what happened at each location. We’re also going to need their shoes and clothing for Forensics. And have them photographed straight away. That goes for the men in the vests, too. We need to show the state they were in after the siege ended in case that becomes an issue down the line.’
‘What if they insist on going home?’
‘Just be tactful. Explain that we need their help, and ask them to give a full statement. And tell them we have a right to take their clothing as it’s evidence. But if they absolutely insist and they have satisfactorily identified themselves, then, yes, take them home. But send officers with them and have the officers stay outside their houses. We’ll send investigating officers later. Oh, and don’t let them know that the vests were fake.’
Gillard was trying to catch Kamran’s eye, so he asked Adams to wait.
‘Everything okay?’ asked Gillard.
‘The undercover NCA guy confirms that they were all acting under duress,’ said Kamran. ‘I don’t have the details, but it sounds as if Shahid forced them to carry out the attacks.’
‘All of them? All nine?’
‘That’s what it sounds like. We should separate them and interview them individually, see if their stories match up.’
Gillard nodded. ‘We need to talk to Talpur ourselves.’
‘What about bringing all nine here to Lambeth? It’d make it easier to cross-reference their stories.’
‘Go for it,’ said Gillard.
‘I’ll get Sergeant Lumley to fix up the rooms. What about the interviews? Who’s going to do them?’
‘Let’s you and I do the prelims. I’ll draft in extra manpower from SO15.’
BIGGIN HILL AIRPORT (7.30 p.m.)
A uniformed constable walked over to Adams. ‘Sorry, sir, but we have a problem with one of the hostages. Says he’s an MP and he’s refusing to stay.’
‘Ah. The Right Honourable Roger Metcalfe,’ said Adams.
‘He’s demanding to speak to whoever’s in charge,’ said the constable.
‘That would be me,’ said Adams. ‘Come on, then.’
The constable took Adams to the main terminal where the hostages had been placed in the main arrivals area, seated apart from each other and accompanied by uniformed officers.
A uniformed sergeant came over. His name was Andy Peters, based at the Bromley station, and he was the Bronze Commander. ‘I’m sorry, sir, but Mr Metcalfe is insisting that he talks to a senior officer.’
‘Not a problem,’ said Adams. ‘How are you getting on?’
‘We’ve got one forensic team here and there’s another on the way,’ said the sergeant. ‘They’ll do the photographs, too. We have a problem with one of the hostages. She’s a Muslim and refuses to take off her clothes.’
‘Let her be, then,’ said Adam. ‘Maybe suggest a female officer accompanies her home and collects the clothing there. And see about getting food for anyone who wants it. Let’s try to keep everyone happy.’
Adams saw the MP was staring at them so he went over to introduce himself. ‘I’m Inspector Ian Adams,’ he said, ‘Silver Commander here.’
‘Which means you’re the man in charge?’ snapped the MP.
‘That’s correct.’
‘Then you need to tell your men to stop preventing me from going home.’
‘We just need you to help us with our enquiries for a little while longer, sir.’
‘I’m not under arrest?’
‘No, sir, you’re not.’
‘So I’m free to go. I can order a taxi and just go home?’
‘As I said, sir, we’d prefer that you help us with our enquiries. We’ll try to make it as quick and painless as possible. I’m sure you want us to catch whoever is responsible for this.’
‘I’m not sure how holding me against my will achieves that objective,’ said Metcalfe.
‘You might have information that would assist us,’ said Adams.
‘I was taken hostage. My life was threatened. I was forced onto a coach and driven to the middle of nowhere. You have the man in custody and, as you like to say, he’s bang to rights.’
Adams looked pained. ‘That’s not what we say, sir. That’s more for television. We need to gather evidence and you are part of that process, I’m afraid.’
‘Well, I’ve told you what happened, and now I would like to go home. Or are you holding me against my will?’
Adams shook his head. ‘No one is holding you against your will, Mr Metcalfe.’
‘Then I’d like to go.’
‘Let me be frank with you, Mr Metcalfe. You’re quite right, I cannot detain you against your will. But I can ask you to remove your shoes and clothing as they need to be examined forensically. I will be giving you a paper suit and paper shoe covers to wear. If you then want to call a taxi and go home, you are free to do so. But if you make your own travel arrangements there is nothing I can do to prevent the press getting pictures of you in that state and, trust me, those pictures won’t be flattering.’
‘Are you threatening me, Inspector?’
Adams smiled amiably. ‘I’m just pointing out that if you make your own arrangements you’ll be at the mercy of the press. If you let us do our job we can keep you away from the cameras. It’s your call, sir.’
Metcalfe glared at the inspector for several seconds, then sighed. ‘Fine. But do try to speed things up.’
‘Absolutely,’ said Adams. ‘Believe me, no one wants this to drag on a moment longer than necessary.’
LAMBETH CENTRAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMAND CENTRE (7.32 p.m.)
Kamran and Gillard walked back into the briefing room and took their places on the podium. Kamran sat down but Gillard remained standing. ‘Well, the prime minister wants to thank you all for a job well done. And you can add my thanks to his because this could have gone a lot worse. A lot worse. I still don’t quite understand how or why it worked out the way it did, but we can all pat ourselves on the back for carrying out our duties as professionally as we did. Just to give you an update, the Bomb Squad has confirmed that all the devices were non-functioning. There were no explosives, though it appears that the men wearing the vests believed that there were. It looks as if Shahid had somehow forced the men to do what they did.’
‘But why?’ asked Waterman. ‘None of this makes any sense.’
‘I’m as confused as you are, Lynne,’ said Gillard. ‘What we’re going to do is split the nine bombers up and bring them here. We’ll need nine interview rooms, which I know we don’t have so we’ll have to improvise. Mo and I will carry out preliminary interviews but I want two investigating officers assigned to each suspect and full statements taken. I also want DNA and fingerprints. At the moment we’re not arresting them, we’re asking them to help with our enquiries. If they insist on leaving, the only way to keep them is to arrest them and therein lies our problem. The NCA officer has already told Silver Commander at the scene that he was acting under duress. That being the case, we can hardly arrest him. But if we can’t arrest him, it makes it very difficult for us to arrest any of the others. And if we arrest them, under PACE we can only hold them for twenty-four hours before charging them. But what do we charge them with?’