Two men questioned over PC Blakelock murder

Two men have been questioned by detectives investigating the murder of Keith Blakelock, the police constable killed during the 1985 Broadwater Farm riots.

The suspects, aged 52 and 46, were arrested at separate addresses in North London on suspicion of murder last Friday. A Metropolitan Police spokesman said the two men, who would have been about 27 and 21 years old in 1985, had been interviewed and released on bail until September. They are both originally from Tottenham, north London. A third suspect, aged 40, who was arrested in Suffolk in February, also remains on police bail.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the death of Pc Blakelock, a father of three who was murdered by a machete-wielding gang during riots in Tottenham.

Three men, Winston Silcott, Mark Braithwaite and Engin Raghip, were convicted of his murder in 1987 and jailed, but their convictions were quashed on appeal in 1991.

Three teenagers, two aged 15 and another aged 16, were also charged with the murder in 1987, but their cases were dismissed after the judge ruled that confessions they had given to police were inadmissible.

Pc Blakelock and his colleague Pc Richard Coombes were attacked as they tried to protect firefighters after violence erupted on the estate. The unrest was sparked by the death of Cynthia Jarrett, 49, who collapsed during a police raid on her home.

A fresh inquiry into Pc Blakelock's death was launched in December 2003 after a review identified several new lines of inquiry.

It is understood that officers leading the investigation have obtained new evidence that has led them to the three suspects. Sources said the three recent arrests do not include any of the six people originally charged.