US military personnel opened fire on a man as he allegedly attempted to break into an RAF base in Suffolk on Monday afternoon. The man was arrested, having suffered only cuts and bruises, police said.
RAF Mildenhall, in Suffolk, was put on lockdown after a “security incident”, a spokesman for the Ministry of Defence said. The RAF base is primarily used by the US air force.
Suffolk police led the investigation into the incident, which is understood to have involved an individual attempting to drive through an entry point at the base.
The force described it as “significant” and urged members of the public to avoid the area near the base.
A police statement said: “Suffolk police were contacted at approximately 1.40pm today to reports of a disturbance at RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk. The base was put into lockdown and units responded immediately.
“Shots were fired by American service personnel and a man has been detained with cuts and bruises and taken into custody. No other people have been injured as a result of the incident.”
Police said a 44-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of criminal trespass.
The man has been taken into custody. Police are not looking for anyone else on the site in relation to the incident, which is not being treated as terrorism-related.
A message on the RAF Mildenhall Facebook page confirmed the base had been put on lockdown at about 1pm and emergency personnel called to deal with the situation. About three hours later it was confirmed that the lockdown had been lifted.
A Pentagon spokesman in Washington said: “The security incident has been contained and a suspect has been apprehended.”
The base has been used by the US military since 1950. Washington was concerned the Soviet Union might think the US “too occupied with the Korean conflict to adequately protect Europe” at the time and placed forces there to counter any threat, according to an official US history of the base.
Several US units are based there permanently, including the 100th Air Refuelling Wing and a branch of its special operations command.
Mildenhall has been earmarked for closure in 2022 after the Pentagon decided to scale down its European military presence. The MoD plans to sell the site, along with 11 others, as part of a plan to generate £500m from the release of military bases and create room for 15,000 new homes.
