Crime spree, including deadly carjacking of La Habra man, leads to 2 life terms

• September 27, 2026

A 32-year-old man was sentenced to two life terms without the possibility of parole earlier this month in connection with the deaths of two people, one during a robbery at a Reseda jewelry store and the other a carjacking victim in Inglewood, court records show.

Joshua Reneau was handed the sentence in Los Angeles Superior Court on Sept. 18, a month after a jury convicted him of more than a dozen counts, including two counts of murder, 10 counts of assault with a deadly weapon, two counts of carjacking, two counts of second degree robbery and one count each of possession of a firearm by a felon and fleeing a pursuing peace officer’s vehicle, court records show.

The murder charges stem from the deaths of Earl Hunter, an accomplice of Reneau’s who was fatally shot by a security guard during the robbery in Reseda on July 29, 2022, and 63-year-old Larry Walker of La Habra, who was dragged by a seatbelt for two miles after Reneau carjacked his car and fled from police on Oct. 13, 2022.

The devastating series of events began just past midnight on July 29, 2022 in the 18500 block of Sherman Way in Reseda when Reneau, Hunter, Derek Hall and Miracole Brown committed a pair of street robberies that led to shootings, which left two victims injured. Two large necklaces were stolen from the victim.

“Officers determined a street robbery had occurred,” police said after Reneau’s arrest. “It was believed the victim was targeted for his jewelry.”

Nearly an hour later, Hunter was found with a gunshot wound in the 18300 block of Saticoy Street and was taken to a hospital, but died.

On Oct. 13, 2022, Los Angeles police detectives arrested Hall, of West Covina, and Brown, of South Los Angeles, police said. They then obtained an arrest warrant for Reneau and went to his home in the 5900 block of Seventh Avenue.

They spotted him getting into the passenger side of a vehicle about 5 p.m. and attempted to pull it over, but the driver fled and a pursuit ensued, police said. After a crash, Reneau got out of the car and carjacked Walker’s vehicle in South Los Angeles, but Walker became entangled in the seatbelt and was dragged alongside his own car for more than two miles.

Reneau crashed into “several police vehicles and ultimately flipped the car on its side” near Prairie and Florence avenues in Inglewood, police said. Walker was found in the street about three houses away from where the car came to rest.

Reneau initially barricaded himself in the car, but eventually surrendered without further incident.

ABC Los Angeles captured footage of Reneau’s sentencing, in which he was seen slumped in a chair with an eye patch covering his left eye, briefly looking around during the hearing, including when Walker’s loved ones gave their statements about the impacts of the brutal crime.

​ Orange County Register 

Stuck 60 feet in the air in Irvine, window washer is rescued

• September 27, 2026

A window washer had to be rescued on Sunday morning, Sept. 27 after being stranded about 60 feet above the ground in Irvine.

The man, washing windows at the Network Capital building at 7700 Irvine Center Dr., found himself stuck around 10:30 a.m. when his harness and lowering system malfunctioned, the Orange County Fire Authority said.

It is unclear how long he was up there or who called for help.

The OCFA technical rescue team used a fire truck’s aerial ladder and bucket to reach the man and lower him to safety, according to its social media posts.

No one was injured, including the window washer.

Additional details were not immediately available.

​ Orange County Register 

Rout at Maryland earns UCLA football a spot in the Top 25

• September 27, 2026

Heading into their cross-country matchup against Maryland, UCLA was the slight favorites to come out of College Park with a win.

Not only did the Bruins put together their best complete performance of the season in the 54-3 victory over Maryland, but they did enough to enter the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2023.

The Bruins (4-0 overall, 2-0 Big Ten) check in as the No. 23 team in the latest AP poll, released Sunday.

After last week’s win over Purdue, in which the Bruins allowed a season-high 38 points, UCLA coach Bob Chesney said that the Bruins were more than capable of putting together a complete team performance.

Safe to say, the Bruins did just that in their 51-point rout over Maryland on Saturday, Sept. 26.

“There is a lot in there that is good on the special teams side,” Chesney said. “Offensively, it got a little wet, a little slippery, so throwing the ball was not a huge option in that second half. But at the same point in time, I thought we ran the ball well and understood the plays we wanted to get. And then defensively, any time that you (have) two pick-sixes, it’s just an impressive game.”

A cold, rainy day at Maryland’s SECU Stadium didn’t allow the Bruins to deploy their full arsenal in the passing game. Nico Iamaleava completed 15 of 24 passes for 209 yards and one touchdown.

“I feel like we still haven’t played to our full potential, and we are putting up 54 points like this,” Iamaleava said. “The emphasis doesn’t matter. It’s to get better. Like Coach Chesney says, that’s the main focus. Trying to put the offense, defense, special teams, [and] complementary football together.”

UCLA’s defense under defensive coordinator Colin Hitschler has been a turnover-forcing machine.

Entering the game, Maryland quarterback Malik Washington had yet to throw an interception. The Bruins picked off Washington four times en route to collecting a season-high five turnovers.

“It was just focusing on the details and focusing on us, because we have everything going against us,” linebacker Sammy Omosigho said. “We are traveling, three-hour time difference, long plane flight, windy conditions, rain, all that stuff. “Just focusing on what we know how to do and focusing on the controllables that we can control. And we did that.”

In addition to the Bruins’ usual running back trio of Wayne Knight, Anthony Woods, and Jaivian Thomas, Chesney also gave opportunities to Troy Leigber and Karson Cox.

Leigber excelled in his limited opportunities, finishing with five carries for 83 yards and a score. The 83 yards were second-most for UCLA in the win.

“It’s really awesome to watch him be able to do that and come away with a big play because he’s earned it, and he’s worked so hard for it,” Chesney said of Leigber’s performance. “I think that he’s just a kid that exemplifies what we’re trying to be as a program…when that light shines on, make the most of it. Proud of him.”

Knight posted his second straight game of 100 rushing yards or more. He ran for 100 yards and one touchdown in addition to three receptions for 35 yards. Knight was one of six Bruins to finish with at least five carries against Maryland.

Chesney believes that one of the offense’s biggest strengths is being able to shuffle through several running backs.

“It’s an ability to rotate guys through … you don’t want to put yourself in a spot where you have one guy carrying a ball 40 times a game; something is bound to happen,” Chesney said. “Ultimately for us, that was a big part of it, is that we feel like we got three that are very capable, and we’re just rotating them through.”

UCLA will have a bye week coming up before traveling to Oregon on Oct. 10. It will be the toughest test for the Bruins yet this season, but Omosigho knows that his team will have to focus on themselves if they want to compete against a serious College Football Playoff contender.

“It’s just being us. We don’t worry about the outcome, we don’t worry about what’s going on, we just focus on each day, getting better each day,” Omosigho said. “Each practice, each walk-through, each everything. Each meal, it’s everything you do, get better. And then the outcome that you want will come out.”

​ Orange County Register 

Trump’s golf tour takes him back to the Presidents Cup

• September 27, 2026

By JAY COHEN

MEDINAH, Ill. (AP) — President Donald Trump returned to the Presidents Cup as honorary chairman for the second time, getting a loud cheer and keeping his remarks brief.

“These people want to see golf,” he said Sunday.

His visit to Medinah Country Club in the Chicago suburb marked the fourth time Trump has gone to a golf tournament this year.

Security was tight. The Secret Service would not let spectators cross from one side of the first fairway to the other except for when Trump took a break from greeting golfers to go inside a suite.

Trump also was honorary chairman at the 2017 Presidents Cup during his first term. He showed up at Liberty National, across the Hudson River from Manhattan, toward the end of the competition when the Americans were assured of winning. He posed with U.S. players during the trophy presentation.

This time he was there at the start of the 12 matches and expected to stay two hours until the last match teed off. He greeted players and caddies on both teams. Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1 player in golf and among several golfers who have played with Trump, patted the president’s shoulder as he walked onto the tee.

Trump was introduced by PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp, prompting Trump to remark “the fake news media will say I got a very bad reception.”

The president spoke briefly, noting that Rolapp had asked him to make a short speech.

“I said, ‘No, I don’t have the courage to make a speech. These people want to see golf. They don’t want to hear speeches,’” Trump said. “I’ll only say this: Our country is doing great, better than ever before.”

Unlike regular golf tournaments, the first tee is boisterous with a flag-waving crowd and music at the Presidents Cup and the Ryder Cup, which Trump attended last year at Bethpage Black on Long Island in New York.

The Americans lost the Ryder Cup, and they trailed on Sunday in the Presidents Cup for only the fourth time in 32 years of competition.

“I’m going to watch the greatest players in the world go out and play and play your hearts out,” Trump told the crowd at Medinah. “It’s going to be a very interesting game of golf.”

Before the horseshoe-shaped grandstand was filled, the loudest buzz was Air Force One flying over Medinah, louder than any of the commercial airlines that have been flying over the course every 70 seconds throughout the week during descent to O’Hare International Airport.

“They were nice enough to name me chairman or honorary chairman, so it’s an honor. It’s a very big event, one of the biggest events in golf by far,” Trump told reporters Sunday morning as he left the White House. “You have the Ryder Cup, and you have the Presidents Cup, and this is a big one, and so it’s a great honor. So, I’m going there.”

It’s a traditional role offered to leaders of every country where the tournament is played.

The Presidents Cup began in 1994 to include international players from non-European countries who were not eligible for the more famed Ryder Cup. The name of the tournament comes from including the head of state of the host country to be honorary chairman.

Then-Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was part of the trophy presentation at the last Presidents Cup in 2024 at Royal Montreal.

President Bill Clinton was in office in 2000 when he attended for one round at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Virginia. The first time Trump attended in 2017, the start of the week was the biggest display of presidents when Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama sat together on the first tee for the opening round.

Trump this year was at the Cadillac Championship at his Trump National Doral near Miami in early May. He also attended the LIV Golf event at his Trump National Bedminster course in New Jersey in August.

Earlier this month he attended the Irish Open over the weekend at his course in Doonbeg, Ireland.

AP writers Darlene Superville and Doug Ferguson contributed from Medinah.

​ Orange County Register 

Strikes kill 6 in Ukraine, 1 in Russia after Moscow rejects German calls to de-escalate

• September 27, 2026

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia and Ukraine exchanged strikes overnight and on Sunday, killing at least six people in Ukraine and one in Russia, officials said, hours after Moscow rejected German calls to ease off its escalation toward NATO.

Russia’s top diplomat on Saturday brushed off what’s believed to have been the first face-to-face meeting with his German counterpart since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The meeting was held during the U.N. General Assembly’s annual gathering of world leaders, as an intensifying aerial war between Russia and Ukraine showed no sign of slowing.

Ties between Russia and Germany have soured in recent weeks, following an attempted drone attack last month at Leipzig airport that Berlin blamed on the Kremlin.

With front-line positions largely unchanged since last year, Moscow has hammered its neighbor with cruise and ballistic missiles, powerful glide bombs and jet-powered drones in recent months. Meanwhile, Kyiv’s long-range drones have targeted Russian oil refineries and businesses.

Strikes kill 6 in Ukraine, 1 in Russia

In Kyiv, a man was found dead after a Russian drone hit a non-residential building overnight, according to Ukraine’s emergency service.

Later on Sunday, Russian drone strikes killed one person and wounded at least five on the outskirts of the capital, according to local administration head Tymur Tkachenko. In Kyiv itself, a drone hit a 9-story apartment block, wounding at least one woman, according to municipal authorities.

In Russian-occupied Ukraine, a strike by Kyiv’s forces on Sunday killed a civilian woman in Enerhodar, the town housing Europe’s largest nuclear plant, according to its Kremlin-installed mayor. Maxim Pukhov said the Ukrainian drones also wounded two others.

Russian forces also attacked Ukraine’s southern Odesa region, which surrounds the country’s main Black Sea port, multiple times overnight into Sunday, killing one person and wounding two, according to the head of the local military administration, Oleh Kiper.

On Sunday afternoon, a woman and a 16-year-old girl were killed as Russian guided bombs struck the city of Sumy in northern Ukraine, regional administration head Oleh Hryhorov reported. He said five other people were wounded.

In Russia’s Belgorod border region, a woman died in a hospital on Sunday after being wounded in a Ukrainian strike, regional authorities said.

Separately, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia struck twice at a data center in Kyiv on Sunday morning, wounding two children and an adult. Russia’s Defense Ministry said its forces struck multiple data centers in Kyiv on Sunday that it claimed were providing internet to Ukraine’s armed forces.

Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly blamed each other for damaging power lines supplying Enerhodar’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which Moscow captured early in the war. The plant is not in service, but needs power to keep cooling systems running and maintain safety.

Russia’s Lavrov brushes off rare Germany meeting

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was dismissive after the meeting in New York, which was held at German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul’s request. Lavrov said that Wadephul “simply reiterated his official position condemning Russia”.

“You can judge for yourself whether that counts as dialogue or not,” he said.

Wadephul expressed openness to a better relationship but said it required a genuine willingness from Russia’s leadership to end the war in Ukraine, according to a German delegation official.

An overwhelming majority of U.N. member nations have repeatedly condemned Moscow’s invasion. The Kremlin describes the war as a “special military operation” intended to ensure Russia’s security and the rights of Russian speakers.

​ Orange County Register 

USC, Riley suffer another loss to Oregon

• September 27, 2026

LOS ANGELES — The USC football team lost to Oregon late Saturday night, the third time in three tries the Trojans  under head coach Lincoln Riley failed to beat the Ducks.

Over Riley’s five seasons, USC has lost a third of the games, and failed to reach the College Football Playoff, frustrating fans.

No. 12 USC fell 41-27 to No. 20 Oregon at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, which kickstarted a stretch of six contests, including four against ranked opponents, bookended by consecutive matchups against No. 5 Indiana and No. 7 Ohio State.

It’s fair to wonder, will Riley make it through?

Five more years remain on his contract, which pays $11 million annually, the sixth-most of Big Ten coaches and 17th, nationally, according to CBS Sports. But his contract includes a buyout north of $70 million.

The Trojans have fired coaches prior to the end of their contracts before, including Riley’s predecessors Clay Helton, Steve Sarkisian — for reasons on and off the football field — and Lane Kiffin. Helton carried the greatest buyout of just over $10 million, according to 247Sports. None of those decisions were authored by current athletics director Jen Cohen, who arrived at USC in 2023.

USC can still qualify for the CFP, if it runs the table, or wins out and competes valiantly against a presumably highly-ranked Buckeyes team. Riley insisted Saturday “we have a damn good football team.”

So, with his hefty buyout, it would be shocking for Saturday’s outcome to result in the instant reaction of a Pat Haden-style firing.

But it’s the lack of progress that raises questions about Riley’s future.

He’s yet to win the big games, including a 6-14 record against Associated Press Top 25 teams. He hasn’t figured out the defense, cycling through three different coordinators as the Trojans haven’t cracked the top 10 among yards allowed per game in the three seasons in the Big Ten. The Trojans finished 10th and seventh in the Pac-12 in that metric in Riley’s first two seasons.

Again, that was supposed to change after Riley hired Gary Patterson, a legendary defensive mind who was TCU’s head coach for 22 years.

Patterson has yet to speak to the media during the regular season, and his unit allowed 35 points to Rutgers on Sept. 19, and on Saturday conceded 504 total yards and four end-to-end drives to an Oregon offense operated by backup quarterback Dylan Raiola.

Answering a question about Patterson’s side of the ball following the game, Riley said:

“I don’t make big picture statements after games. We need to stay focused on us, like in this moment, in this game. It’s not about any of the games before, any of the games coming up. That’s a fantasy world. We’ve got some things we’ve got to correct.”

Raiola was thrust into the spur of an extremely emotional moment after Oregon’s starter Dante Moore exited the Coliseum in an ambulance because of Desman Stephens II’s brutal hit. (Stephens was subsequently suspended for one game, USC announced Sunday morning.)

Albeit, Raiola isn’t just any backup. The junior was a five-star recruit in 247Sports’ rankings. The No. 2 overall quarterback in the 2024 class. At Nebraska, he started against Big Ten defenses for two seasons, totaling 4,819 yards, 31 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.

Additionally, when a backup enters midway through a game, it can confuse a defense that prepared for the starter, or “change the flow of the game a little bit,” as Riley put it.

So coming out of a halftime break, in which USC could have adjusted, the Trojans opted for soft zone, cover-2 shell alignments, and man-to-man looks that rarely included press coverage.

Raiola took the opportunity to release the ball quickly to playmakers. He connected with Dierre Hill Jr. four times for 105 yards, as the running back posted 109 yards after the catch. Those easy completions allowed him to settle in. He later delivered a 34-yard strike to Jamari Johnson to convert a third-and-9 late in the third quarter. He diagnosed a favorable matchup, finding Dakorien Moore for a 29-yard touchdown that put the Ducks ahead for good with 8:35 remaining.

“We gave up some big plays,” Riley said. “We missed some tackles that created some of the explosives. We got to play better. We got to play tighter. Some of the opportunities to get off the field, got to be better there.”

In the end, it was a scene USC fans have grown all too familiar with during Riley’s tenure. In fact, the scoreboard in Autzen Stadium read 42-27 in favor of Oregon when these squads met in 2025, almost the exact outcome of Saturday’s game.

While Riley is confident this iteration of Trojans can turn things around now, there’s few tangible reasons to trust that.

STEPHENS ISSUES APOLOGY

USC linebacker linebacker Desman Stephens issued an apology on Sunday for his dangerous late hit on Oregon quarterback Dante Moore and his celebration afterward.

Stephens, who has been suspended for one game, apologized and expressed empathy for Moore and his family in a statement issued by the Trojans on Sunday monring.

Coach Lincoln Riley called Stephens’ actions “unacceptable” while announcing the suspension for his starting linebacker, who won’t play next weekend against Washington.

Stephens, a junior from Clarkston, Michigan, was ejected for targeting after he dived in to hit Moore while the quarterback slid to the turf in the red zone during the second quarter of Oregon’s 41-27 victory Saturday night at the Coliseum.

Moore’s head snapped back and hit the turf hard, and he was motionless on the grass while the Ducks confronted the celebrating Stephens in a melee on the field. Moore eventually left the field on a stretcher and in an ambulance with a neck brace.

“I want to sincerely apologize for my actions during yesterday’s game,” Stephens said. “Seeing a player injured like that is incredibly serious, and my reaction in the moments afterward was completely inappropriate and inexcusable.

“Regardless of what was going through my mind at the time, there is no justification for smiling or celebrating while another player receives medical attention. I take full responsibility for my actions. That is not the person or teammate I want to be, and I will learn from this.

“I am deeply sorry to Dante, his family and everyone who saw my reaction. It is not representative of USC or our program. I hope he makes a full and speedy recovery.”

Stephens’ hit was late and dangerous, with Oregon coach Dan Lanning calling it “disgusting.” Stephens drew even more ire for celebrating on the field and then smiling on the bench — and for returning to the Trojans’ sideline in the second half after being ejected.

Riley defended Stephens’ return to the sideline Saturday night, saying he was allowed back because “he’s on our football team.”

“Desman’s actions in last night’s game are unacceptable and are not reflective of USC football nor of his personal character,” Riley said in a statement Sunday. “He understands his mistake, accepts the consequences of his actions and will learn from this. The entire Trojan Family wishes Dante a full recovery, and we send our best regards to him and his family.”

— The Associated Press contributed to this report

​ Orange County Register 

Palestinian death toll in Gaza war passes 74,000, and other Mideast news

• September 27, 2026

By The Associated Press

The Palestinian death toll from the nearly three-year Israel-Hamas war has surpassed 74,000, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says Tehran has not been formally notified of U.S. President Donald Trump’s rejection of its proposed deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. And the World Health Organization says nearly 700 people have been killed in Yemen since fighting escalated last month.

Here is a look at the latest news from the Middle East on Sunday.

Iran’s top diplomat says they await word from mediators

Araghchi said Tehran awaits a U.S. response through mediators after Trump rejected Iran’s proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume negotiations.

Speaking from New York, Araghchi told NBC that Iran is “fully prepared for the war to be resumed.”

He added, however: “At the same time, we stand ready for diplomacy. It is up to President Trump to choose.”

Trump told Axios he expects U.S. negotiators to engage in more talks this week.

Araghchi, who had described the proposal on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, earlier told Iranian state media that Tehran’s conditions for reopening the strait remained unchanged and there would be “no backing down from them.”

In Gaza, over 1,100 have been killed since ceasefire

Gaza’s Health Ministry on Saturday said the Palestinian death toll has risen to 74,016, with 175,068 wounded. The war began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants invaded Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 others hostage.

While a ceasefire that took effect last Oct. 10 has halted the heaviest fighting, Israeli strikes have continued in what the military has said are responses to threats or attacks.

Since the ceasefire, 1,145 Palestinians have been killed, said the ministry, which is part of the Hamas-led government. It maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and international organizations. It does not distinguish between civilians and militants. Meanwhile, seven Israeli soldiers have been killed since the ceasefire.

Next steps in the U.S.-brokered ceasefire remain largely stalled. Israeli forces now control over half of the territory, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says they will not withdraw until Hamas disarms.

Israeli strikes in Gaza kill at least 2

Israeli strikes in central and southern Gaza killed two Palestinians and wounded several others, according to hospital officials.

In Gaza City, a strike hit a car, killing one person and wounding several others, according to Shifa Hospital. Video showed a chaotic scene around the charred vehicle.

Israel’s military said it targeted a military operative.

A separate Israeli strike in the Muwasi area of Khan Younis killed one person and wounded three others, according to Nasser Hospital.

Israeli’s military said it targeted a Hamas militant.

Houthi rebels accuse Yemeni forces of a deadly strike

Iranian-backed Houthi rebels accused Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces of striking a market in Yemen’s Taiz province, killing at least seven people.

Anees al-Asbahi, a spokesperson for the Houthi-run health ministry, said the strike hit shops in a market in the district of Taiziyah. He said at least other 40 people, including five children, were wounded.

The military of Yemen’s internationally recognized government rejected the Houthi claims, saying it attacked Houthi “warehouses and positions” in northern, southern and western Taiz and left “dozens of dead and wounded” among the rebels.

There has been fierce fighting on Yemen’s Red Sea coast as government forces attempt to reverse recent Houthi advances. The WHO says almost 700 people have been killed since the escalation last month.

Hezbollah supporters mark Nasrallah’s death

Thousands of people gathered in Beirut’s southern suburbs to mark the two-year anniversary of former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s death in an Israeli airstrike. In a video address, his successor, Naim Kassem, reiterated the militant group’s refusal to disarm while Israeli forces occupy southern Lebanon.

“With regard to disarmament, we have told (the government) that we are ready for dialogue, but first the south must be liberated and its people return,” he said.

The latest Israel-Hezbollah war began when the Iran-backed group fired missiles across the border, two days after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran. Israel responded with bombardment and a ground invasion and now occupies a large swath of the south.

Lebanon’s government signed a U.S.-brokered agreement in June under which Israeli forces would gradually withdraw in exchange for Hezbollah disarming. Hezbollah was not a party to the negotiations, and implementation of the agreement has stalled.

Son of Israel’s ambassador to US still in critical condition

Neria Leiter’s life “still hangs in the balance,” Israeli Ambassador to the United States Yechiel Leiter said on social media. His son, an Israeli military reservist, was gravely injured in a ramming attack in the occupied West Bank last week.

“But we’ve seen some promising signs that we grasp in hope,” Leiter said, asking for prayers for his son.

​ Orange County Register 

5 men arrested near UK air base used by US in Iran war on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act

• September 27, 2026

By PAN PYLAS

LONDON (AP) — U.K. police said Sunday that five men arrested in the middle of the night near an air base used by the United States during its war against Iran are being held on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act that appeared to involve three trucks.

London’s Metropolitan Police, which takes the lead on potential terrorist activities, said police received a call at 12:45 a.m. related to the three suspicious vehicles that appeared to be traveling toward RAF Fairford, a U.K.-owned base that is operated by the U.S. under an agreement dating back to the Cold War.

Fairford has been used by American bombers for strictly limited strikes against Iranian missile sites under an agreement with former British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who voiced opposition to the war after it was launched by the U.S. and Israel on Feb. 28.

Iran has previously indicated that a base used to attack its territory is a legitimate target.

Authorities are investigating a link between the Fairford arrests and Iran as one possibility.

The five men were initially arrested on suspicion of committing offenses under the Explosives Act in the Whelford area, which backs onto RAF Fairford that hosts the headquarters of the U.S. Air Force’s 501st Combat Support Wing and the 420th Air Base Squadron.

Aerial footage from Sky News appeared to show a bomb disposal robot roaming between three white trucks. The rear doors of two of the vans were open and large black items could be seen scattered around. The robot appeared to be working toward getting access to the third truck.

Police gave no details as to the nationality of those arrested. Suspects arrested under the Terrorism Act 2000 can be detained for up to 14 days without charge, compared to the 24-hour limit for standard arrests, without an extension application.

“We are in the early stages of an investigation, and five men remain in custody,” said Vicki Evans, the Met’s counterterrorism policing senior national coordinator.

Evans said a 400-meter (yard) cordon has been put in place around the three vehicles that raised suspicion while the army conducts examinations. As a precaution, around 85 households have been evacuated whilst these examinations take place. Some have been taken to a nearby recreation center.

US and UK leaders respond to arrests

U.S. President Donald Trump heaped praise on those involved with the arrests.

“It was an amazing job. We had them under investigation. They were looking to do big damage to our fort. And working with the British worked out great,” he told reporters in Chicago. “We had them under view for a long time and we got them.”

And British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he knew the incident would be “deeply concerning” for many. In a post on social media, Burnham thanked police and the armed forces for their response and said he was grateful to the residents who have been evacuated from their homes “while precautionary checks are carried out.”

He urged people “not to speculate while the authorities establish the full facts.”

The defense secretaries of the U.S. and the U.K., Pete Hegseth and Wes Streeting, have spoken about the incident.

The base is home to US bombers striking Iran

Under the terms agreed, the U.K. government allowed the American military to use Fairford purely for defensive purposes, such as striking Iranian missile sites.

British security officials say proxies linked to Iran have been behind a string of arson and sabotage attempts in the U.K. and other countries, many of them targeting the Jewish community. They have previously warned that Tehran could expand its targets in the U.K. if conflicts in the Middle East continue.

The arrests come at a time of heightened tensions around the threat from hostile states to the U.K., with Russia and Iran among those that have used proxies to commit crimes on their behalf on British soil. In March, officials said the number of national security cases involving activity by hostile states including Iran increased 50% in the six months to December 2025.

Local residents evacuated as investigation continues

The local Gloucestershire police force said the situation appeared to be “contained” and urged local residents to follow the advice as the investigation continues.

Julian Tudsbery, who has lived in Whelford for 30 years, said a resident had reported three “suspicious vans” in the village early Sunday.

“There were several police, three police cars in the drive, and they said you need to evacuate, there’s been a major incident, said he couldn’t elaborate,” he said.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Air Force said U.S. and British personnel “remain vigilant” and will take appropriate actions to ensure safety of all those at the base.

“For operational security reasons we will not discuss specific force protection measures,” the spokesperson said. “We constantly assess a variety of factors that determine what measures we institute or modify to protect our installations, our people and their families.”

Associated Press writers Jill Lawless in Liverpool, England, and Ben Finley in Washington, D.C. contributed to this report.

​ Orange County Register