Man arrested after claiming to be member of Islamic State released

A man arrested by armed police in Salisbury after “claiming to be a member of ISIS” has been released under investigation.

On Monday, April 6, police received separate calls from members of the public in the Cathedral Close, reporting a man who was claiming to be a member of ISIS.

A short time later a man was located on Market Square in Salisbury and arrested for possession of drugs and public order act offences.

Wiltshire Police has now confirmed that the man has been released under investigation for now while enquiries continue.

At the time, Sergeant Ben Foster from Salisbury Community Police Team 2, said: “While the presence of armed officers carrying weapons in the centre of Salisbury would have been alarming for people to witness it demonstrates our ability to quickly provide an appropriate response to incidents like this and conclude them safely with no risk to the public.

“On this occasion we have not identified any links to terrorism and are treating this as an isolated public order offence.”

Source: Salisbury Journal