A man was arrested Monday at a military base used by the US Air Force in Britain after he was met with gunfire while trying to ram an entrance with his car, according to reports.
The incident at the Mildenhall Royal Air Force base, which houses the 100th Air refueling Wing and some special-ops squadrons, was not believed to terror-related, a security source said.
“Shots were fired by American service personnel and a man has been detained with cuts and bruises and taken into custody,” Suffolk police said, Reuters reported. “No other people have been injured as a result of the incident.”
The man apparently tried to bluff his way in and when he failed, an altercation broke out and he tried to force his way through the gate, the Telegraph of the UK reported.
A defense official said opening fire in such a situation was standard practice for the personnel guarding the facility.
“If you enter a military base forcibly you would expect an armed response,” the source told the news outlet.
The suspect’s identity has not been released.
The Pentagon initially urged everyone near the base to avoid it, but a lockdown was lifted about an hour after the potential threat was reported.
Suffolk police said area schools and businesses have resumed normal activities because there was no danger to the community.
The US uses the sprawling base about 77 miles northeast of London to refuel American and NATO aircraft. It is home to about 3,100 US military and 3,000 family members.
The base is earmarked for closure after the United States said it was going to move its operations to Germany.
In 2015, the base was scouted out by an Islamic extremist who eventually received a life sentence for plotting an attack against American military personnel.
Junead Khan was tried for using his job as a delivery driver to study Mildenhall and another RAF base.
A jury convicted Khan last year of planning to travel to Syria as a supporter of ISIS and preparing possible attacks at Mildenhall and RAF Lakenheath, which also is used by US personnel.
With Post Wires
