Khalid Rashad ‘hid stick of military-grade explosive in Tesco bag’

Accused: Khalid Rashad claims the explosives and ammunition were left by someone else
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A stick of military-grade plastic explosive and a fuse were found hidden in a Tesco carrier bag at a terrace house near Wembley stadium, the Old Bailey heard today.

Police recovered 226 grams of PE-4 explosives and rounds of ammunition in a search of Khalid Rashad’s home in Monks Park last April.

Prosecutor William Boyce QC said officers found the explosives, which were formerly used by the Army, as well as a long black fuse in a knotted Tesco carrier bag in an outbuilding in Rashad’s back garden.

“Nobody should be in possession of this sort of thing for obvious reasons,” he told the jury. “It would cause considerable, even fatal, injury to those in close proximity and damage to property.”

He told the court police also found five blank cartridges, which had been modified to become live rounds, hidden with cassettes inside a Chanel shoebox.

“This case concerns the finding of plastic explosives — military grade — detonation material and ammunition,” he told the jury. “A police officer found a knotted Tesco plastic carrier bag which was within a cardboard box. The bag contained a further plastic bag, and inside was a cylindrical stick of PE-4 plastic explosives and was labelled as such.”

Rashad is accused of one charge of possessing explosives and two of possessing ammunition without authorisation. He denies all three charges.

Mr Boyce said the items were discovered during a detailed search of the house last year.

He told the court that Rashad’s home was being extended at the time and the outbuilding where the explosives were found was not easy to access from the road.

“Although he and his wife owned the outbuilding, and it was kept secure by them, it was in use for access by him on nearly a daily basis,” said Mr Boyce. “He says they must all have been put there by somebody else and he knew nothing about them.”

The trial continues.

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