Armed police raid Newcastle kebab shop in search for Clapham chemical attack suspect
Police investigating the Clapham alkali attack have raided two addresses in Tyne and Wear associated with the suspect Abdul Ezedi, the Metropolitan Police have said.
Armed officers executed two warrants at addresses associated with Ezedi in the early hours of Thursday morning. One of the addresses was a kebab shop where he had previously worked.
Scotland Yard, which is continuing to hunt for Ezedi more than a week on from the attack in south-west London, said no arrests had been made during the raids.
The Met said the two raids were carried out in a joint operation with Northumbria Police. The force said the addresses included Ezedi’s place of work, and that searches continue.
Staff at a convenience store three doors down from the Best Bites Pizza & Grill House, said Ezedi was a regular customer.
“He was a customer and a perfectly pleasant guy,” said one member of the convenience store staff.
“I remember that during Ramadan he would just buy Red Bull for himself and his Turkish colleagues at the takeaway, then when he broke his fast he would buy Jaffa Cakes and chocolates in the evening.”
Staff said they saw 20 officers in seven police cars close off the street. They were led from the premises as officers in chemical hazard suits searched the property.
Bethany Snowdon, 18, said she was a regular at Beat Bites and recalled Ezedi as a “normal bloke”, adding: “He’s been working there for about a year now. I saw him on telly and thought I know him.”
Ezedi, 35, is accused of pouring a strong alkali on his ex-partner and injuring her two young children, aged three and eight.
A major manhunt is under way for the suspect, with the last confirmed sighting at just before 11.30pm on Wednesday Jan 31, a few hours after the attack, as he crossed over Chelsea Bridge and entered Battersea Park in central London, then crossed back over the same bridge minutes later.
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. Investigators said she had agreed to meet Ezedi on the day of the attack, and that she and her children were in a car with him when he struck.
Commenting on the continuing hunt for Ezedi Commander Jon Savell, of the Metropolitan Police, said: “Our investigation team has been working tirelessly to piece together information to discover what happened.
“While we still retain an open mind, it appears the motivation for this truly awful attack is the breakdown of a relationship.
“The woman remains in a critical but stable condition in hospital. As we know she has very serious injuries and remains sedated and so poorly we haven’t yet been able to speak to her.
“This was a senseless and cruel attack by a dangerous man – we urge anyone with information about Ezedi’s whereabouts to contact us as matter of urgency. He is wanted for attempted murder.”
In a statement released to the PA news agency, friends of the attack victim, who have launched a fundraiser for the family, said: “Our friend is first and foremost a devoted and loving mother.
“Her children are her life. She is generous to a fault and a wonderful cook and host. All she has ever wanted is a safe home for her and her beautiful, kind little girls.”
“We are still coming to terms with the fact that this monstrous attack will change their lives forever. It is difficult to imagine now how they will recover, and all we want is for them to be able to rebuild their lives.
“We cannot put into words how grateful we are to the heroic neighbours of Lessar Avenue [where the attack took place]. They risked their own lives to save them and we can only imagine how distressing the attack was for them too. They are angels in our eyes.”
Detective Superintendent Rick Sewart, who is leading the search 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.
“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.
