Bomb threat closes down central London. 
April 28, 2012


The main target of a man who brought central London to a standstill yesterday after threatening to blow himself up has described how she escaped with her life by pretending to be pregnant.   

Abby Baafi, 27, told how the man had burst into the Tottenham Court Road offices of the Advantage HGV training company with canisters strapped to his waist and announced that he was going to kill everyone inside.   

The bomb threat prompted a huge police operation as snipers took to nearby rooftops, helicopters hovered overhead and more than 1,000 people were evacuated from surrounding buildings.


The West End was brought to a standstill as police cordoned off the block and negotiators were brought in to communicate with the would-be bomber.

A bare-chested man, believed to be Michael Green, 49, was eventually arrested three hours after the incident began, with nobody harmed.

Miss Baafi yesterday described the moment the man arrived in the office as "the most terrifying of my life". The head of training and operations said she recognised him immediately as he had completed three HGV courses with the firm, failing every one, at a cost of several thousand pounds. "It was the most terrifying experience of my life," she said. "I have never felt so scared. There were 12 of us in the office. He just came in and said he wanted to kill us all.

"He just turned up, strapped up in gasoline cylinders. Basically, he threatened to blow up the office. He said he doesn't care about his life, he doesn't care about anything, he's going to blow up everybody. I recognised him because he was one of our previous customers."

Miss Baafi said the man had specifically been looking for her. But she lied to him in order to escape. "I said, 'My name's not Abby and I'm three months pregnant,' so he let me go," she added. "But there were others still inside."

The assailant was also reportedly carrying a blowtorch. Witnesses said he let most of the people out of the building, but kept four people back, including a director, believed to be James Clifford, and three salesmen.

Computers, televisions and piles of paperwork were seen being thrown out of the company's fifth-floor window.

Dozens of police descended on the area, ordering drivers to abandon cars and telling passengers to get off buses. Motorists were urged to avoid the West End and two Tube stations were closed.

Nick Horan, director of Catalyst, a management company, said he heard shouting at about midday. He said: "I looked out and someone was chucking computers out the window. At one point I even saw a flat-screen TV being lobbed out and at least two or three filing cabinets so paper has just gone everywhere all over the street. At first I could hear people cheering as if it was funny but then it stopped. I could hear a man shouting but could not make out what he was saying."

Richard Webb, 26, who works nearby at the Nursing and Midwifery Council, said: "I saw the Swat team going in and four people coming out with their hands above their head. People were running about in the street and police were pulling motorists out of cars. Their cars are now abandoned in the street."

As the incident unfolded, office workers streamed out of buildings and were ushered more than 300 metres away. Others were ordered to stay inside.

Frances Barber, 53, an actress who appeared in the last series of Dr Who was ordered to stay indoors. She used her Twitter feed to keep followers updated. "We are all hostages inside. Police won't let us out. Tott Ct Rd deserted. All shops, cafes, etc evacuated. Police everywhere," she wrote.

Mak Chishty, the Metropolitan Police commander for north London, said: "After contact with specialist police negotiators the man came out of the building and was arrested at 3pm. He is now in police custody." The building, Shropshire House, was subsequently searched and the road was reopened at 5pm.

Advantage claims to be the UK's leading HGV training specialist, offering to help drivers gain their licence and find jobs. Records lodged with Companies House state that it went into liquidation last month. A spokesman for the Professional Drivers' Association said it had received numerous complaints about the company. "We get repeated complaints from people on our forums who say they take their money and then can't find them any training and never find them a job," she said.   

"They claim to have thousands of jobs but often nothing materialises. The courses cost up to 3000 pounds so unsuspecting drivers looking for work see the promises of earning 600 pounds a week, hand over their money and then nothing happens."   

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/world/bomb-threat-closes-down-central-london-20120428-1xra2.html#ixzz1tImOHym5

Imagine the problems they'll have with the 2012 Olympics -

it only takes one mad man to bring the city to it's knees.