Shots and explosions as police launch raids on two more London properties
police officers going to and from an unmarked van.”
He said they were wearing “full gear”, adding: “The first bang was nothing like I’d heard before.”
Mr Bateman said the bangs that followed were not as loud but sounded “the equivalent” of gunshots. He said he thought it was more like a business address than a property where people live.
Officers were standing guard in front of the property.
Terrorists brought carnage to the streets of Britain for the second time in as many weeks, killing seven and leaving 21 fighting for their lives.
Pedestrians were mowed down by a van on London Bridge before attackers stabbed a police officer and revellers around Borough Market with 12-inch knives.
One of the attackers shouted “this is for Allah” as he knifed a man near a pub – while the Islamic State terror group is claiming responsibility for the attack.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick confirmed police knew the identity of all three killers and Scotland Yard says it will release the name of the third terrorist “as soon as operationally possible”.
She said it was a “high priority” for officers to understand whether they had help from anyone else in the planning of the attack.
The three men, wearing fake suicide bomb vests, were shot dead by eight officers outside a pub after police fires an “unprecedented” hail of 50 bullets, while a bystander was also shot.
Scotland Yard said seven women and five men aged between 19 and 60 were arrested under the Terrorism Act in Barking on Sunday. A 55-year-old man was later released without charge.
A large-scale probe has been launched, with detectives amassing an enormous amount of forensic material during a string of searches around east London. The force said: “A number of people have been detained and are at present being spoken to. Searches are ongoing at both addresses.”