A white man dressed in burka has been arrested after police detonated a suspect package in Watford town centre in UK.
Police officers were called to a street close to the Hertfordshire town's main shopping area just after 11am today following reports a suspicious item had been found outside a Travelodge hotel.
The man is believed to have been carrying two rucksacks - one branded with children's TV character Peppa Pig - although it is not known whether these were were the ones destroyed.
Images of the man began to circulate on social media, showing him in full-length, Islamic-style black robes with a niqab covering his face, as he was confronted by police in nearby Clarendon Road.
Army bomb disposal experts and a bomb disposal robot were called to the scene as the area was evacuated.
People were asked to avoid the centre of the town and many sought refuge in a nearby church while cordons still remain in place on Market Street and Watford High Street.
Hertfordshire Constabulary said the device had been 'safely destroyed' by bomb disposal experts this afternoon and confirmed a man had been arrested in connection with the incident.
The suspect was carrying Peppa Pig and Ladybird children's rucksacks filled with books when he was handcuffed by officers.
Officers had earlier appealed for a dog walker - who was walking through Watford town centre at the time - to come forward. She has since been identified.
Road closures remain in place in the town and residents have been asked to avoid the town centre until further notice.
Watford residents have taken to social media to express their concerns about the incident as it continues to develop.
A number of Twitter users have also pointed out this is the second bomb scare in Watford in the last five years.
daily mail
daily mail
