Knaresborough counts the cost of hoax that caused armed police drama

Armed officers descended on Knaresborough’s town centre, evacuating nearby properties and warning school children to stay inside, after being told of an “immediate threat” at Paragon Pizza on Wednesday afternoon.

The takeaway’s owner, Razaul Karim, from Leeds, and other staff, said they were stopped at gunpoint and questioned by officers who mentioned the Terrorism Act. Residents in the market town were yesterday promising to lend their support to Paragon after it emerged the police response was the result of a malicious call alleging the shop had guns and explosives.

North Yorkshire Police’s newly-launched Major Crime Unit is now investigating the hoax call and the force has thanked residents and local businesses who were affected by the closure of the town centre for several hours.

Assistant Chief Constable Paul Kennedy said the force’s prime concern was to ensure the safety of members of the public and pledged to bring the hoax caller to justice.

And Ian Thompson, Chief Inspector for the Harrogate District, which covers Knaresborough, said it was “very unusual” for the force to respond with such force to a call which turned out to be a hoax.

He said: “It is unprecedented for us to do that as a result of a hoax, it shows how seriously we had to take this incident.

“Information like that comes into the control room, we will always look for collaboration, we then have a chief inspector in the control room, they will investigate and try to get further intelligence, and then make an assessment about what they say is the threat.

“That is what ends up causing the huge disruption we saw at the end of a market day. We appreciate that is what happened but it is all about keeping people safe.

“Businesses in the community were really good about the disruption that was caused. We did evacuate some of the business premises close by, which we understand would have damaged takings.”

Mr Thompson said if and when the case came to court the force would quantify how much the operation had cost in terms of extra resources being deployed, staff working overtime and losses to local businesses.

He said: “We had so many resources, some of the day shift started at 7am that day. It has cost us thousands and there will be an investigation to do. Paragon Pizza should have been open last night and having a decent night’s business.”

Police were yesterday visiting father-of-four Mr Karim to thank him for his help, find out more about why he might have been targeted, and explain why they responded in the way they did.

Speaking after his arrest, the takeaway owner said: “Whatever happened is really bad. I want to make sure they find out who gave them this information and why. I have done nothing wrong. I have no idea what their reasons were.”

A campaign was also getting underway last night to encourage locals to support Paragon Pizza. One Facebook user, Graham Richards, said: “I intend to give my custom to the Paragon Pizza in Knaresborough and let them know they are appreciated in our local community.”

Andy Grinter of the Knaresborough Chamber of Trade said “a lot were inconvenienced” by the prolonged closure of the town centre at the end of market day.

He said: “There was general traffic mayhem as a consequence, with enforced road closures and regrettably the opening night of the Frazer Theatre’s production of ‘Beyond All Reasonable Doubt’ had to be cancelled because of this, which disappointed many.

“Knaresborough is a lovely town to visit and I hope this unfortunate incident won’t carry with it any long lasting effects.”