British and US intelligence had the Fairford suspects under investigation before the arrests, rather than police reacting mainly to a resident's 999 call.
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“With respect, though, she does only have a partial picture,”
CNN Five men arrested after a 999 call about three vans near RAF Fairford ›
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The BBC understands the operation was not intelligence led.
“We had them under investigation. They were looking to do big damage to our fort. And working with the British worked out great,”