UP TO FOUR AS 75-YR-OLD DIES
Gun hero of tragedy ‘is minister’s guard’ Man held in Antwerp for ‘bid to ram crowd’
LANDLORD Owner of raided flat SECURITY Ministers get armoured vehicles THE hero officer who shot dead crazed terrorist Khalid Masood inside Parliament is thought to have been a senior Cabinet Minister’s personal bodyguard.
Witnesses told the Mirror that the first armed men on the scene after Masood burst through the Carriage Gates and stabbed PC Keith Palmer were two “close protection officers”, believed to be working for Defence Secretary Michael Fallon, inset.
Scotland Yard would not confirm the officer’s identity but certain ministers always get special security, including armoured cars, because of their sensitive roles.
As a review of Parliament’s security was launched yesterday, questions were raised over why no armed police were on the gates.
Labour MP Alan Johnson said: “The armed police are the second line of defence. The first line of defence, all too often, are the unarmed police, which we might need to rethink.”
Fellow Labour MP Mary Creagh described the frequently opened gates as “the one weak spot” on Parliament’s otherwise fortified estate, with visitors facing airport-style scans at other entrances.
Tory MP Theresa Villiers said it was “time to consider” whether all police officers at possible terror targets should carry firearms.
Meanwhile Mike Pullen, a solicitor passing the scene in a taxi, said he saw a man run through the gates and attack a policeman on duty. He added: “We heard shots. The officer killed was engaged with him.” BOMB CHECK The car in Belgian port A TERROR suspect was held after apparently trying to drive a car into a crowd of shoppers in Antwerp.
He was identified by Belgian prosecutors as Mohamed R, 39, a French national based in France.
Prosecutors said weapons in his car boot included a “riot gun” but did not give details.
Police in the port said his French-registered vehicle was spotted as it approached the busy Scheldt riverside yesterday. Eyewitnesses said they saw many people jump out of the way as the car accelerated.
A local police source said: “The car was stopped as it jumped a red light. Soldiers on patrol searched it and it was found to contain weapons and other illegal materials. The driver was arrested. Bomb disposal experts are at the scene.”
This week is the first anniversary of the IS suicide bombings in Brussels that killed 32 people.