Paedo US diplomat seized in dawn raid on London flat and smuggled out of UK on cargo plane before cops can investigate

AMERICAN spies grabbed a paedophile working for the US Embassy in London and flew him back to the States — without informing ­British police. The cloak-and-dagger operation was sparked by officials probing his US-based brother. US spies grabbed a paedophile working for the US Embassy in London and flew him back to the States Credit: Alamy Flight data shows that on August 24, the day before the dawn raid, Kalitta Air flight K49709 flew from Chicago to RAF Fairford, Gloucs, where the US Air Force has a large presence Credit: Alamy The brother is accused of sending abusive material to the diplomat, an ex-serviceman based at the US Embassy in Nine Elms, South London. Authorities were believed to have sought a court order in the States before storming the diplomat’s flat in Putney on August 25. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Our source said they found child abuse images at the address and seized the man despite having no legal powers of arrest in the UK. Flight data shows that on August 24, the day before the dawn raid, Kalitta Air flight K49709 — a Boeing 747-4R7F — flew from Chicago to RAF Fairford, Gloucs, where the US Air Force has a large presence. On August 25 the same plane, now flight K4529, left Fairford at 5.33pm and arrived at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware at 7.44pm local time after a seven-hour, 11-minute journey. The same plane left there at 11.22pm and landed at O’Hare Airport in Chicago, Illinois, after a one-hour 38-minute journey. Records show the Boeing — listed as a cargo plane — had not travelled to Fairford for at least two months before August 25. The Met Police and other British authorities were informed only after the diplomat’s extraction. Most read in The Sun Our source added: “They should have told Scotland Yard when they carried out the raid, and certainly when they found material. “Instead we think they have taken him to a US airbase and flown him 4,000-plus miles to where his brother was being investigated. We think it was a dawn raid before they then took him to the base in a US military convoy. “The man may well face justice in the US but he should be before the courts here.” Marine Security Guards, who patrol the US Embassy in London, are believed to have led the raid. Their action, a huge blow to UK-US relations, has sparked accusations of a cover-up and prompted crisis meetings between Scotland Yard and senior Cabinet ministers including Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood. Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley is being kept updated. Our source said they found child abuse images at the address and seized the man despite having no legal powers of arrest in the UK Credit: Alamy Marine Security Guards, who patrol the US Embassy in London, are believed to have led the raid Credit: Jetphotos It threatens to cast a shadow over PM Andy Burnham’s planned meeting with Donald Trump at the UN in New York in just over a week. A source said: “This has caused enormous ripples right through to Downing Street and the Home Office — everyone is talking about it. “The Americans’ actions have been outrageous and left people utterly furious. “At first, when they told Scotland Yard they wouldn’t even give the address. It’s astonishing as this man was living in a private address and potentially committing crimes here yet we weren’t told in time. How events unfolded It threatens to cast a shadow over PM Andy Burnham’s planned meeting with Donald Trump at the UN in New York in just over a week Credit: Shutterstock Editorial “The case was prompted by them investigating the man’s brother, who was apparently sending him images. “But he could also have been in touch with paedophiles here. “And if there are child-abuse crimes, there are possibly other crimes he could have committed. There are fears the Yanks are trying to keep this in-house and it’s a cover-up. And we now don’t know if we’ll ever get him back to face British justice.” Well-placed sources said meetings over the alleged paedo diplomat row had “gone to the very top” and taken place in Sir Mark Rowley’s office this week. A US diplomatic source hit back yesterday, saying: “We acted decisively. If we had ceded ground and waited there could have been delays and diplomacy that could have gone on for weeks or months.” Leading extradition lawyer Edward Grange, a partner at Corker Binning, told The Sun on Sunday: “The US Embassy is not American territory and diplomatic status does not give US law enforcement a free hand to exercise police powers on British soil. “If someone in Britain is wanted to face criminal charges in America and will not return voluntarily, the proper route is extradition. “If extradition was deliberately bypassed, that would raise very serious questions about the legality of the operation.” The Met Police said: “On August 25, US authorities made us aware of an investigation they are conducting into suspected offences in London relating to indecent images of children. We continue to liaise with them regarding this matter.” The Government said: “We expect all foreign diplomats in the UK to abide by our laws. As a US investigation is ongoing, it would not be appropriate to comment further.” A US Embassy spokesperson said: “We are aware of allegations concerning an individual assigned to the Embassy. The United States government expects all personnel to adhere to the highest standards of conduct, and we take these allegations seriously.” A source compared the seriousness of the incident to the Harry Dunn case Credit: PA US citizen Anne Sacoolas killed Harry in a collision on the wrong side of the road Echoes of Harry By Michael Hamilton THE diplomatic row echoes the case of biker Harry Dunn, who was killed by US citizen Anne Sacoolas in a collision on the wrong side of the road. Her Volvo hit the 19-year-old’s Kawasaki head-on in August 2019 near RAF Croughton, Northants, where her husband worked as a US intelligence official. Her car had been on the right-hand side of the road when it should have been on the left. Mum-of-two Sacoolas, now 49, fled the UK for the States 19 days after the crash, claiming diplomatic immunity. The Government sought her return, but the US declined the extradition request in 2020. She has never come back. In December 2022, Sacoolas appeared at London’s Old Bailey via video link and pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving. She got an eight-month jail term, suspended for a year.