Picture copyright Reuters Dominic Ra
Picture copyright
Reuters
Dominic Raab’s bodyguard has been “faraway from operational duties” after allegedly leaving his gun on a airplane at Heathrow.
A cleaner is reported to have discovered the loaded Glock 19 pistol in its holster on a seat on the United Airways flight after it landed in London on Friday.
The international secretary had been in Washington DC to talk to US politicians about Brexit.
Scotland Yard stated an inside investigation was going down.
The cleaner raised the alarm after discovering the weapon, the Solar reported, and police boarded the airplane – earlier than realising the gun belonged to certainly one of Mr Raab’s shut safety officers.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman stated: “We’re conscious of the incident on a flight into the UK on Friday 18 September and we’re taking this matter extraordinarily critically.
“The officer concerned has since been faraway from operational duties while an inside investigation into the circumstances is going down.”
‘Lapse in focus’
The Solar reported that the officer took off his holster and put it on his seat earlier than escorting the international secretary off the flight – leaving it behind.
Former Met chief superintendent Nick Aldworth informed the BBC there have been strict guidelines concerning the dealing with of firearms, however that human error does occur.
“This kind of factor just isn’t widespread, but it surely does occur,” he informed the As we speak programme. “It occurs as a result of human beings are within the system and human beings function underneath an unlimited quantity of stress generally, notably when they’re managing armed operations or in the midst of an armed operation.
“This seems to be an unlucky lapse in focus for which the officer can pay a value of their profession, in as a lot as they’ve been faraway from operational duties, which is one thing they most likely love doing, and sadly for them, will not have the ability to do.”
He added that the Met takes such issues “extremely critically”.
In February, a bodyguard for former prime minister David Cameron was investigated for reportedly leaving his gun in a airplane bathroom.
In that incident, the gun was discovered by a passenger on a British Airways flight from New York to London. Mr Cameron is entitled to continued safety supplied by the Metropolitan Police as a former prime minister.