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ITN
Bus driver found 'bomb'
Bus driver found 'bomb'
A bus driver has told a jury of the moment he discovered an alleged rucksack bomb at the back of his vehicle.Mark Maybanks was in east London when suspected July 21 terror plotter Muktar Said Ibrahim allegedly tried to set off a homemade device.Woolwich Crown Court heard Mr Maybanks found the bag with the explosive mixture oozing out of the sides.He described how Ibrahim made "staring eye contact" with him as he boarded the number 26 bus near Bank station - just minutes before he attempted to detonate his device.He said he suddenly heard a "very loud bang", forcing him to stop the vehicle in the middle of the road.Initially fearing he had been hit by something, Mr Maybanks said he left his cab to check the exterior of the bus. As he did so, Ibrahim fled, the jury heard.After evacuating the bus, Mr Maybanks checked the top deck where he found Ibrahim's rucksack abondoned next to the back seat, with the alleged explosive mixture of hydrogen peroxide and chapatti flour oozing out of the sides.The jury was shown CCTV images of the moment Ibrahim allegedly tried to detonate the device on July 21 2005, just two weeks after the July 7 London bombings in the capital.Ibrahim, 29, of Stoke Newington, north London, is one of six men accused of hatching the extremist Muslim plot to carry out a series of murderous suicide bombings on the London public transport system.The other defendants are: Ramzi Mohammed, 25, of North Kensington, west London; Manfo Kwaku Asiedu, 33, of no fixed address; Yassin Omar, 26, from New Southgate, north London; Hussain Osman, 28, of no fixed address; and Adel Yahya, 24, of High Road, Tottenham, north London.They all deny charges of conspiracy to murder and conspiracy to cause explosions likely to endanger life.© Independent Television News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.
ITN | January 29, 2007
