Three men arrested for terrorism offences

Three men have been arrested on terrorism charges following raids in Bolton and Wigan, police said.

Officers from North West Counter Terrorism Police (CTPNW) raided four properties in Bolton and Great Lever and the Abram and Hindley areas of Wigan at around 7.30pm.

The men, aged 35, 36 and 51, were detained in separate locations and arrested on suspicion of committing, preparing and inciting acts of terrorism.

The three remain in custody and are being questioned by detectives.

Crime scenes remain at the four properties while investigations are carried out, police said.

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Assistant Chief Constable Rob Potts, who has responsibility for counter-terrorism policing in the North West, said: “This evening we executed a number of planned warrants as part of an ongoing counter-terrorism investigation.

“Three men have been taken into custody for questioning and the scenes remain in place while we carry out further enquiries. Today’s activity was the culmination of a lot of detailed planning and we have put measures in place to minimize disruption to local residents as much as possible.

“I understand that any time an arrest of this nature is made, it will cause concern and people will naturally have questions.

“While we cannot go into specific details of the investigation at this stage, I want to reassure members of the public that we do not currently believe there is a wider threat related to today’s activity.

“Further details will be released where appropriate as the investigation progresses.”