Car crashes into UK PM Rishi Sunak's Downing Street home gates, 1 arrested for criminal damage
London, May 25: A man remains under arrest on Thursday on suspicion of criminal damage and dangerous driving after a car crashed into the gates of 10 Downing Street in London, the official residence of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, the Metropolitan Police said.
Sunak was in his office at the time of the incident but left soon after from another exit for a pre-scheduled departure, sources from 10 Downing Street said.
The cordons placed by police around the street have since been lifted even as armed officers remain on guard at the Prime Minister's office, as is usual.
According to reports, counter-terrorism police are not involved in the ongoing police enquiries at this stage.
"At around 16.20 hours [local time] a car collided with the gates of Downing Street on Whitehall," the Met Police said in a statement.
"Armed officers arrested a man at the scene on suspicion of criminal damage and dangerous driving. There are no reports of any injuries. Enquiries are ongoing," the police said.
Officers could soon be seen winding down the heightened security operation on Whitehall, the main political hub of London between Trafalgar Square and Parliament Square.
Officials inside Downing Street were initially asked to stay indoors but could soon be seen moving out of offices, including from the Cabinet Office which is next door to 10 Downing Street.
Meanwhile, images on social media showed a silver passenger car with its boot open slammed into the gates of Downing Street, which is significantly protected with barriers and a solid double-barrel black iron gate at all times.
As CCTV footage emerged, a handcuffed heavy-set man with white hair could be seen being led away by armed Met Police officers. Eyewitnesses reported hearing a bang and officers shouting at the suspect as taser guns were deployed before the arrest.
Officers were later pictured searching the vehicle's boot and removing a large white sheet.
CCTV footage of the incident being played on television showed the small silver hatchback coming out of a car park next to the Ministry of Defence (MoD) building, crossing Whitehall before abruptly breaking and then driving forward directly into the gates of Downing Street. The security around one of the most famous streets of the world has been heightened ever since the militant Irish Republican Army (IRA) threat in the 1990s.
The main gates remain shut at all times behind additional movable barriers and are opened only briefly for any official cars entering or exiting the street. Any visitors to Downing Street are subjected to strict checks through a side gate.
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Jharkhand horror: Man kills live-in partner, chops body into 40 pieces
Ranchi (PTI): A 25-year-old man, who works as a butcher, allegedly strangled to death his live-in partner and chopped her body into 40 to 50 pieces in a forested area in Jharkhand’s Khunti district, police said on Wednesday.
The accused, identified as Naresh Bhengra, was arrested.
The matter came to light after around a fortnight after the killing when a stray dog was found with human body parts near Jordag village in Jariagarh police station on November 24.
Bhengra was in a live-in relationship with the deceased, a 24-year-old woman also from Khunti district, in Tamil Nadu for the past couple of years. Sometime back, he returned to Jharkhand, got married to another woman without telling his partner anything and went back to the southern state without his wife to join her.
"The brutal incident occurred on November 8 when they reached Khunti as the accused who had married another woman did not wish to take her home. Instead, he took her to a forest near his house at Jordag village in Jariagarh police station and chopped the body into pieces. The man has been arrested," Khunti Superintendent of Police Aman Kumar told PTI.
Inspector Ashok Singh who investigated the case said the man worked in a butcher shop in Tamil Nadu and was expert in slicing chicken.
“He admitted chopping the body parts of the woman into 40 to 50 pieces before leaving those in the forest for wild animals to feast on. The police recovered several parts on November 24 after a dog in the area was seen with a hand," Singh told PTI.
Singh said that the woman, who was unaware of his marriage, pressured him to return to Khunti. After reaching Ranchi, they boarded a train on November 24 and headed to the man's village.
"Under a plan, the man took her to Khunti in an autorickshaw near his home and asked her to wait. He returned with sharp weapons and strangulated her with her dupatta after raping her. He then cut the body into 40 to 50 pieces and left for his home to live with his wife," Singh said.
The woman, however, had informed her mother that she had boarded a train and would be living with her partner, the police officer said.
Following the recovery of body parts, a bag was also found in the forest with the murdered woman's belongings including her Aadhaar card. The mother of the woman was called at the spot and she identified her daughter's belongings.
"The mother suspected the man behind the crime who after being nabbed by the police admitted to chopping the woman into pieces," the official added.
The incident has sent shockwaves among people in the region, with the Shraddha Walker murder case of 2022 still fresh in their memory.
Walker was killed by her live-in partner who chopped her body into pieces before dumping them in the jungle in South Delhi’s Mehrauli.
