Second suspect arrested after man with axe reportedly entered Manchester mosque

A second suspect has been arrested after reports of a man armed with an axe entering a Manchester mosque during Ramadan prayers.Police were called to Manchester-central-mosque" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="36125" data-entity-type="location">Manchester Central Mosque on Tuesday evening after reports that a man had entered. Weapons, including a hammer and an axe, were found on him.A white man in his 50s was arrested at the scene on suspicion of possessing an offensive weapon and class B drugs.Manchester-police" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="3930" data-entity-type="organization">Greater Manchester Police had been continuing to search for a black man who was reported to be acting suspiciously in the mosque at the same time. On Thursday, officers said they had arrested a man in his 20s on suspicion of conspiracy to commit a section 18 assault.The first suspect remains in custody and a warrant of further detention has been obtained to allow detectives more time to question him, police said.Police said there was no intelligence to suggest a wider threat to the community and they were not looking for further suspects.The assistant chief constable, John Webster, said on Thursday: “Our investigation has been working at pace, leading to us making an arrest for the outstanding man this morning. Detectives will be conducting interviews with him today.“We continue to take this incident seriously and have been granted extra time by the courts to question the first man, so we can thoroughly explore all possible lines of inquiry into the circumstances.“We know this has been a concerning time for many of our communities, and we remain committed to acting on any concerns reported to us. You can do this by contacting us on 101, or via the LiveChat function on the GMP website.“Alternatively, contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. Always dial 999 in an emergency.