Should The Vehicle Have Been Blown Up?

[agchristie]

With the UK threat level increase a few years ago has the description "suspicious" got a different perception, more akin to paranoia perhaps?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/20/bemused-motorist-returns-to-find-car-blown-up-after-itv-bomb-sca/

[agchristie]

Shoota, yes I was aware of that. Are these increases though skewing what is viewed as 'suspicious'?

Had the threat levels not been increased, would we have seen the reaction as we did today?

[shoota]

If it was a legal vehicle, parked correctly with that container in view with a less serious threat level probably not.

[shoota]

But you can't divorce an incident from the treat level in force at the time.

[agchristie]

Shoota, thank you.

Funny thing suspicion. Remember the case of the police shooting the guy brandishing a chair leg from a bag?

[THECORBYLOON]

I am wondering what the controlled explosion was used for. If there were a suspect item in the car could see the point of doing something to interrupt its effectiveness but other than the container in the passenger side is there any mention of anything else? The containers would need a device to detonate or a source of ignition to have any effect so why could they not have shattered the door windows to allow better access to the car?

[shoota]

The explosive device could have been hidden and a container of fuel left in the car to accelerate the explosion, classic car bomb design.

[Old_Geezer]

I reckon they could have simply cordoned off the surrounding area until proper checks had been made. The nearest buildings seem quite some way away.

[agchristie]

TCL - therein lies the dilemma. How suspicious was the vehicle?

[THECORBYLOON]

SHOOTA, yes but what exactly did the controlled explosion do? What was being destroyed or prevented from operating?

[agchristie]

Shoota > The explosive device could have been hidden.

True. Timers, switches, remote button jobs, etc

[THECORBYLOON]

How would the explosion have prevented a hidden device from being effective?

[shoota]

A controlled explosion is just what it says on the tin.
You accept that you are going to have an explosion but you control when it happens in order to minimise injuries.
It isn't done lightly, all factors and options will have been considered before it is authorised.
I can't get my head round the fact that people are questioning it...

[DTCwordfan]

around 1m 20, that's the way to blow them up.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DK_pw2tq2Q

[THECORBYLOON]

SHOOTA the container in the passenger side appears to be undamaged and I am struggling to understand what else in the car was suspicious enough to have been destroyed in the controlled explosion.

[shoota]

The current alert state is 'serious' (the second highest, topped only by imminent.)
You have a car parked and unattended at the side of a road outside a high profile 'newsworthy building.
The boot is closed so you are unable to confirm whether there is a bomb in there or not
There is a container of fluid which could be anything from cooking fat through fuel of some description to liquid explosive.
Perhaps you have the knowledge that the car is unregistered, from miles away or registered to a person with a middle eastern sounding name.
And still you cannot see why people have a reasonable suspicion that it may be a car bomb?

[THEMOTLEY1]

It most certainly should have been under the circumstances

[THECORBYLOON]

There is a photo of the car with its boot open and side windows intact, presumably prior to the controlled explosion.