Armed police raids in Newcastle as manhunt for Clapham chemical attack suspect continues
As the search for the main suspect of the Clapham Chemical attack continues - more than a week on - armed police raids have taken place in Newcastle
Last updated 8th Feb 2024
As the search for the main suspect of the Clapham Chemical attack continues - more than a week on - armed police raids have taken place in Newcastle.
Northumbria Police were working with the Metropolitan Police to carry out the raids, in the early hours of this morning.
No arrests have been made following the raids, one of which was at Ezedi's place of work.
A shopkeeper who runs a store near the pizza shop which police looking for alkali attack suspect Abdul Ezedi raided on Wednesday night said officers escorted workers out of the building.
CCTV from the local shop showed police cars and vans arriving at Best Bite in Forest Hall, North Tyneside, at around 11pm, with blue lights flashing.
Around seven men could be seen walking across the road outside the shop with their hands up, past police cars which were blocking traffic.
The shopkeeper, who asked not to be named, said: "There was not a lot of shouting.
"They escorted the team members across the road.
"My guess is the police were tipped off that he was there, but he obviously was not."
A local resident said armed police who swooped on the pizza shop where wanted Abdul Ezedi used to work held up perspex shields to protect themselves as they went in.
The woman, who asked not to be named, said police were at the Best Bite pizza shop in Forest Hall, North Tyneside, for about two hours.
She said: "I saw lots of blue flashing lights, even though my blinds were closed.
"I had a look out and a police car was parked diagonally across the street to block cars from coming past."
She said more police vehicles quickly arrived bringing armed police to the scene.
"There was lots of police activity," she said. "They shouted out to anyone in the Best Bite 'If there's anyone in there, you are to come out now'.
"They were carrying perspex shields to protect themselves from anything thrown at them, I guess."
The police officers' calm demeanour meant she soon realised Ezedi was not there.
She said: "I asked a police officer if they thought Acid Man was here - I couldn't remember his name - she said she couldn't say anything.
"I said it was pretty obvious from the amount of police there and the show of force. I know he used to work there."
The local resident said the police activity continued for around two hours and officers drilled into an outside door to gain access to a storeroom.
Asked if the raid worried her, she said: "I wasn't frightened. I just thought I hope he is in there and they get him so he is not free to do it to anyone else."
Ezedi, 35, is accused of pouring a strong alkali on his ex-partner, and injuring her two young children, aged three and eight, on Wednesday January 31 in Clapham, south London.
A major manhunt is under way for the suspect, with the last confirmed sighting now at around 11pm that evening, a few hours after the attack, on Vauxhall Bridge Road in central London.
He was initially travelling around on the Tube network using his bank card and, after that, appears to have been walking a route that broadly hugged the River Thames.
The woman hurt in the attack, who may lose the sight in her right eye, remains sedated in hospital and is still too ill to speak to police.
READ MORE: Clapham attack victim just wanted a safe home for her girls
It comes after police revealed the woman had been in a relationship with Ezedi, with the breakdown of the relationship a possible motive for the attack.
Investigators said that she had agreed to meet him on the day of the attack, and that she and her children were in a car with Ezedi when he struck.
Metropolitan Police Commander Jon Savell said on Wednesday the manhunt for Ezedi is "an incredibly high-priority attempted murder investigation".
Ezedi, who is not the father of the children who were hurt, suffered significant facial injuries that could prove fatal if left untreated.
Detective Superintendent Rick Sewart, who is leading the hunt for the Afghan refugee, said: "The medical injuries to Ezedi appear very significant from imagery that we have recovered, to the right side of his face.
"And through the National Crime Agency we have received medical interpretation which would indicate that his injuries could be potentially fatal if not treated."
Ezedi came to the UK hidden in a lorry in 2016, and was turned down twice for asylum before successfully appealing against the Home Office rejection by claiming he had converted to Christianity.
He was convicted of two sexual offences in 2018 but was allowed to stay in the UK because his crimes were not serious enough to meet the threshold for deportation.
A tribunal judge is understood to have ruled in favour of his asylum claim in 2020 after a retired Baptist church minister confirmed he had converted to Christianity, reportedly describing Ezedi as "wholly committed" to his new religion.
On Wednesday, a Baptist church in Tyne and Wear confirmed it was aware of a "connection" it had with the suspect.
In a statement, the church in Jarrow said: "Grange Road Baptist Church brings together and welcomes people from all walks of life and from many different nations.
"We are aware of the connection Abdul Shakoor Ezedi has had with our church.
"As soon as we became aware of the current situation, we made contact with and are co-operating with the relevant authorities. We are praying for all those affected by the situation."
Investigators say they are keeping an open mind as to whether Ezedi is dead, possibly after jumping in the river, or whether he is being helped to stay hidden.
Details of Ezedi were circulated to all UK forces and ports at an early stage.
Darius Nasimi, from the Afghanistan and Central Asian Association charity, called on anyone in the community who may be helping him to contact police.