NI: Failed bomb attack on police station
Dissident republicans were blamed today for a failed bomb attack on a police station in Derry.
Armed men hijacked a van and ordered the driver to take the vehicle, which contained a blast incendiary device, to the Strand Road Police Station.
But fearing for his own safety, the driver abandoned the van and raised the alarm around 12.30am.
British army experts made the device safe this morning following an operation which forced the evacuation of nine homes.
Police said the terrified driver was threatened at gunpoint by the masked gang after his vehicle was hijacked in the Altcar Park area.
It was abandoned on Northland Road.
Chief Inspector Ken Finney condemned the gang and warned the incident could have been fatal.
He said: “Those behind last night’s attack showed remarkable contempt for the people of this city.
“Had the blast incendiary exploded it would have caused untold damage and could easily have lead to loss of life.
“We recognise that local residents were greatly inconvenienced as a result of the security alert however our priority at that time had to be the preservation of life.
“The blame for any inconvenience suffered by householders rests firmly with those who planned and carried out the attack.”
