{UAH} why UK police struggle to watch terror suspects
|
5:21 AM |
No comments |
Martin Brunt
Crime Correspondent
If Manchester bomber Salman Abedi was known to the intelligence services, why wasn't he under surveillance and stopped before he could carry out his deadly attack?
Home Secretary Amber Rudd said he was "known, up to a point", whatever that means, but it certainly suggests that he was not deemed a serious threat; just one of the 3,000 or so people on the official counter-terror radar.
:: LIVE: The latest updates on the Manchester attack
But it is impractical to keep a constant eye on more than a fraction of such suspects. And here's why.
Full, 24-hour surveillance of a suspect typically involves at least two teams of 15 specialists, each working a 12-hour shift which must include time for travel, debrief, evidence log and meals.
If they are lucky they will get six hours' sleep, so already their capability is being reduced.
They might maintain their level of sharpness for a few days, but then fatigue and boredom sets in, or they get spotted by those they are watching and have to be replaced.
So, for longer-term surveillance you need a third team of another 15 specialists to supplement those who drop out of the first two.
:: Manchester bomber linked to key UK IS recruiter
:: Bomber's brother knew of terror plans
As time and the surveillance goes on team members get ill, or need a day off, or have to sit promotion exams, or have family issues, or need to attend vital training days, or special skills or safety update sessions. After only a few weeks you need a fourth team and suddenly it's a surveillance operation that involves 60 people.
Sixty people for each of the 3,000 terror suspects adds up to 180,000 individuals, a number far greater than the combined staff of all UK police and MI5.
And then there is the hardware. Each team will have half-a-dozen cars, as well as a large and a small van, essentially for static observation through tiny bored holes in doors and panels.
The cars will be ordinary looking, so they don't stand out in any location. So much about surveillance is looking normal to avoid attracting attention.
But the cars will have hidden microphones and recorders and often something unusual, such as headlights with changeable configurations. If a target might think the distant headlights in his rear-view mirror have been following him for a while, the surveillance team can switch one off, so the suspect believes he now has a motorbike behind him.
:: Theresa May launches her 'war on terror'
But a motorbike rider will be part of the team, essentially to locate and catch up with targets who manage to "lose" their tails.
The vans could carry fluorescent yellow jackets, hard hats and magnetic stickers that might show gas, electric or water board logos.
Once, a van surveillance team was following a target who suddenly stopped and didn't move for hours. Posing as a group of workmen the team got out, opened a manhole and sat around it whiling away the time.
They were soon berated by a passer-by who shouted: "No wonder my water bills are so high with you lot sitting around doing nothing, who is your gaffer?" They simply had to take the abuse, or blow their cover.
:: The victims of the Manchester terror attack
A team might carry uniforms for members to wear in certain situations. If the target is meeting someone in a big hotel, who would blink at an air stewardess wandering by?
Or even a traffic cop uniform for keeping an eye on a target meeting in a motorway service station. Nobody would suspect the ordinary, uniformed cop in a yellow coat is really an undercover surveillance officer.
Not everything goes as planned. One team member who posed as a blind man with a white stick found that often when he stopped to 'look' at a target building someone would insist on helping him cross the road.
It's a fascinating part of policing, but it sucks up manpower and costs. That is why only the most serious of the terror suspects is put under full surveillance.
Whether Salman Abedi should have been one of them is an issue that will be the subject of debate for a long time.
(This analysis is based on an interview with Kevin Hurley, a former police commander who has organised and run surveillance teams in the Metropolitan Police, City of London police and the southeast regional crime squad).
Disclaimer:Everyone posting to this Forum bears the sole responsibility for any legal consequences of his or her postings, and hence statements and facts must be presented responsibly. Your continued membership signifies that you agree to this disclaimer and pledge to abide by our Rules and Guidelines.To unsubscribe from this group, send email to: ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment