Tottenham Court Road Siege Suspect Michael Green Was BNP Candidate For Stevenage

Posted: 30/04/2012 14:14 Updated: 30/04/2012 15:26

Michael Green

The man charged with causing a three-hour siege that shut one of the busiest streets in Central London was a BNP candidate in the 2010 general election.

Michael Green was charged on Saturday with possessing a weapon, false imprisonment and making a bomb hoax after armed police closed off Tottenham Court Road on Friday.

The anti-racist organisation Hope Not Hate exposed the 48-year-old, who allegedly threatened to blow himself up on Friday, as the BNP candidate for Stevenage during the 2010 general election, which was confirmed by Stevenage local paper The Comet.

A profile of Green in the Hertfordshire Mercury lists his policies for election, picturing the suspect along with candidates for UKIP, the Conservatives, an independent, Labour and the Liberal Democrat.

Green came fifth in the election, with 2.26%.

The revelation comes after BNP head Nick Griffin openly mocked the suspect on twitter, writing:


Nick Griffin MEP
Police say hostage taker is 'mentally unstable'. No shit, Sherlock!

The BNP did not respond to questions when contacted by The Huffington Post about Green.

Green appeared at Highbury Corner Magistrates Court on Monday charged with possession of a weapon for the discharge of a noxious liquid/gas or electrical incapacitating device.

Loading Slideshow...
  • Masked police personnel leave Tottenham

    Masked police personnel leave Tottenham Court Road in central London on April 27, 2012, after a man was arrested after causing a disturbance in an office building in central London. Police arrested a man who witnesses said had threatened to blow himself up in an office building in central London, forcing a busy shopping street to be sealed off in a three-hour standoff on Friday. AFP PHOTO / MIGUEL MEDINA (Photo credit should read MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP/GettyImages)

  • Armed Police Tackle Hostage Situation In Central London

    LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 27: An armed police officer in Tottenham Court Road prepares himself during a suspected hostage situation on April 27, 2012 in London, England. The busy shopping street in central London was evacuated after a 50-year-old man, named as Michael Green, arrived in the offices of Advantage HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) 'strapped up with gasoline cylinders, and threatened to blow up the office'. According to reports the man, who began to throw computers and other office equipment from the office window, failed a HGV training course and demanded his money back. The siege ended following the arrest of the man and no harm to any hostages. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

  • Members of the public gather on Tottenha

    Members of the public gather on Tottenham Court Road in central London on April 27, 2012, as police seal off the street amid reports of an armed man causing a disturbance. At least a dozen emergency vehicles with lights flashing could be seen blocking off Tottenham Court Road in London, AFP reporters said. AFP PHOTO / DANIEL SORABJI (Photo credit should read MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP/GettyImages)

  • Armed Police Tackle Hostage Situation In Central London

    LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 27: Armed police officer on the scene where a man threaten to blow himself up in an office building on Tottenham Court Road on April 27, 2012 in London, England. The busy shopping street in central London was evacuated after a 50-year-old man, named as Michael Green, arrived in the offices of Advantage HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) 'strapped up with gasoline cylinders, and threatened to blow up the office'. According to reports the man, who began to throw computers and other office equipment from the office window, failed a HGV training course and demanded his money back. The siege ended following the arrest of the man and no harm to any hostages. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

  • Armed Police Tackle Hostage Situation In Central London

    LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 27: A man throws a computer monitor from an upper floor window during a hostage situation on Tottenham Court Road on April 27, 2012 in London, England. The busy shopping street in central London was evacuated after a 50-year-old man, named as Michael Green, arrived in the offices of Advantage HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) 'strapped up with gasoline cylinders, and threatened to blow up the office'. According to reports the man, who began to throw computers and other office equipment from the office window, failed a HGV training course and demanded his money back. The siege ended following the arrest of the man and no harm to any hostages. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

  • Armed Police Tackle Hostage Situation In Central London

    LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 27: Armed police officers on the scene where a man threaten to blow himself up in an office building on Tottenham Court Road on April 27, 2012 in London, England. The busy shopping street in central London was evacuated after a 50-year-old man, named as Michael Green, arrived in the offices of Advantage HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) 'strapped up with gasoline cylinders, and threatened to blow up the office'. According to reports the man, who began to throw computers and other office equipment from the office window, failed a HGV training course and demanded his money back. The siege ended following the arrest of the man and no harm to any hostages. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

  • Armed Police Tackle Hostage Situation In Central London

    LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 27: Armed police officers on the scene where a man threaten to blow himself up in an office building on Tottenham Court Road on April 27, 2012 in London, England. The busy shopping street in central London has been evacuated after an unidentified 49-year-old man arrived in the offices of Advantage HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) 'strapped up with gasoline cylinders, and threatened to blow up the office'. According to reports the man, who began to throw computers and other office equipment from the office window, failed a HGV training course and demanded his money back. The siege has recently ended following the arrest of the man. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

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The man charged with causing a three-hour siege that shut one of the busiest streets in Central London was a BNP candidate in the 2010 general election. Michael Green was charged on Saturday with p...
The man charged with causing a three-hour siege that shut one of the busiest streets in Central London was a BNP candidate in the 2010 general election. Michael Green was charged on Saturday with p...
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02:03 PM on 05/01/2012
His policies make good common sense.
04:35 PM on 05/01/2012
the type of policies which wouldn't look out of place in fundamentalist religious states in the Middle East. Just goes to show that there is not much more than a fag paper between the BNP and their Muslim extremists brothers.
05:10 PM on 05/01/2012
But if we don't implement policies like he advocates then we will be well on the way to a middle-east style fundamentalist religious state. See places like Luton where white and even black elderly people are being victimised to force them to leave now predominantly Asian areas.
05:58 PM on 05/01/2012
Just read them too, and must agree,I hope I live long enough to see the the British people rise again from these terrible times.
01:11 PM on 05/01/2012
Is being mentally unstable a requirement for the BNP by any chance?
03:02 PM on 05/01/2012
It appears to me, most Politicians are mentally unstable!
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Euroview
11:56 AM on 05/01/2012
Doesn't come as a surprise. Griffin himself is a convicted criminal.
10:57 AM on 05/01/2012
Whats wrong with any of the policies stated ?
10:53 PM on 05/01/2012
The first denies Britain of labor that it needs and for the record not everyone who immigrates here does low paid jobs. There are plenty of foreign accountants, engineers, actors, etc...

The second reduces Britain to international obscurity and weakness because without the EU, Britain can't even come close to playing on equal terms with powers like China, India, Russia and the United States.

The third violates international law and any kind of human decency by sending those most in need to face torture, discrimination or even death.

The fourth ignores the fact that the British "indigenous people" are composed of waves of immigration and invasion throughout centuries including Vikings, Frenchmen, the Dutch, etc... As such there is no such thing as a pure "indigenous people". Also the very idea of such a thing smacks of racism

The fifth is draconian. This isn't Saudi Arabia. We shouldn't be punishing thieves with amputation even if that would stop theft.

The sixth is just plain ideological nonsense. If Britain withdraws from the EU, the ECHR, the UN, etc...it may be sovereign but sovereign to do what? This isn't the super power of the 19th century but a small island nation. Cooperation and international agreement are necessary to do anything in this day and age.
HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Hugh Albert
Moderation in somethings
09:44 AM on 05/03/2012
I like it. F & F.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Ben Wilson
What's the story mourning Tories?
09:38 AM on 05/01/2012
Another impending election another torrential downpour of BNP scandals. Deserving or not, jobworths is in their element.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Euroview
11:59 AM on 05/01/2012
What a curious comment.

Perhaps they should have ignored the fact that this man was standing for political office?
06:00 PM on 05/01/2012
stood not standing
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Ben Wilson
What's the story mourning Tories?
02:00 AM on 05/02/2012
I'm a news and election junkie. Whenever there's and election the news always triple the sensational stories about BNP. I know it's absurd to suggest this story or the timing of it has been deliberatly manipulated to conincide with local elections, but it's amazing how they always find such stories on the run up to elections. And nevertheless the story is classic sensationalism. The BNP element is weaned out. he ran in 2010, he's not ran since, the article even says that, but oddly most of us form an opinion assuming he would have ran this year, which of course is more worse on the BNP. It is also sensationalism regardless of this because it is the continuation of yesterdays news. I don't like the BNP, but I have to ask, what if was a councellor for the Greens? It's not just people in the BNP who flip their lid, but it means all the more that he was BNP, just as if for a right winger it would have been gravy if he was a muslim.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Christos Palmer
Χριστός Παλμερ
10:22 PM on 04/30/2012
At least he wont be tucking into public funds, or trucking on our roads, enjoy the porridge mate!
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Reality always bites
Sometimes just a bit peckish
08:15 PM on 04/30/2012
Why have the few posts so far described Michael Green as an animal.
He hasn't killed or maimed anyone.
He possibly had a legitimate reason (In his mind) for taking the actions he did.
Has anyone considered what has driven him to join the BNP.
Perhaps he has been a continuous victim of circumstance over a long period of time and finally snapped.
Since original reports alleged he had been 'Ripped off' by the company whose offices he attacked then maybe his political leanings have no bearing on a misguided quest for fairness.
The inconvenience he caused is but a grain of sand compared to the beach of inconvenience the Olympics will cause.
This comment has been removed.
10:28 PM on 04/30/2012
"Has anyone considered what has driven him to join the BNP."

The only reasons for joining the BNP are ignorance, hatred, or irrational anger so it makes sense that he's a member. Now the BNP may not have caused him to do this per se, but it does attract people so inclined.
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Reality always bites
Sometimes just a bit peckish
10:54 PM on 04/30/2012
How trite- The BNP only attracts people with ignorance, hatred and irrational anger.
I am not a supporter of the party- but I do appreciate that some citizens are finding themselves in desperate situations.
Maybe you have a salient opinion regarding those people who vote BNP or even for people like George Galloway?
11:16 PM on 04/30/2012
really? you ever read their manifesto? you ever been to their meetings? hmmm all pish & wind me thinks you are.a keyboard warrior sat on the virtual moral high ground. and i'm not a BNP member but i know a few who are and animals they are not.
07:16 PM on 04/30/2012
He's a BNP candidate ..'nuff said...
By the way was the Respect candidate seen holding an AK47 stopped from standing for election? Bet they weren't because we're all too scared of upsetting a "minority group", but what about the majority of us I ask??
10:23 PM on 04/30/2012
So holding a gun for a photo makes one ineligible for election in Britain?
12:36 AM on 05/01/2012
Short answer to yr Q is of course no!
Than you know as well I do, or anyone else for that matter. That to be photographed holding an AK47 - especially if yr from Respect - is going to stir a lot of crap up!! Oh then there's the illegality of possessing such a weapon, so if the photo in question was in fact taken in the UK there's been an offence committed and therefore a charge to be answered..
06:04 PM on 05/01/2012
Yes I would say so !!!!!
06:22 PM on 04/30/2012
What about the " Respect " Candidate who has been picture holding an AK-47 and bazooka type weapon, why dont you report this to the people ????
02:05 PM on 05/01/2012
Because HP has a quite obvious agenda. They are more obvious than the BBC in their extreme-left thinking.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Euroview
11:18 PM on 05/01/2012
We'll be so sorry to see you go!
10:55 PM on 05/01/2012
Two wrongs don't make a right. The fact that people from Respect are nutcases, doesn't mean the people from the BNP aren't also nutcases.
11:08 PM on 05/01/2012
Thats true, do some research and look at how many Labour MP's have convictions for child sex offences, look at how many Conservatives are tax dodgers, etc etc ... Why is the media quick to point out the bad in the BNP, but seem to keep things quite about other political parties.
04:22 PM on 04/30/2012
Just goes to show that there are criminals in every party. Looks like the good people of this land are either the poor that don't have a say in politics or the ones that have fled this once fine country. I have lost faith in all politics! I am gobsmacked to why this animal was allowed to stand for the BNP in the 1st place! My choice will be UKIP on Thursday!!!
05:13 PM on 04/30/2012
Hardly an animal!
06:21 PM on 04/30/2012
"I am gobsmacked to why this animal was allowed to stand for the BNP in the 1st place!"

I don't know if you're aware, but about 95% of people reading this are now pissing themselves laughing. Who else would stand for the BNP but an animal?
07:35 PM on 04/30/2012
I sure am! Gotta fan you for that.
11:21 PM on 04/30/2012
quite a lot actually. it is only the demented ferver of the fanatical marxists (responsible for over 50 million murders) that subvert,cajole,bully and lie to frighten people into a politically correct straightjacket. get most people with a few beers down their neck and watch what really is bubbling under the surface. IT AINT P.C.
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vividrick
I came, I saw...I had a cup of tea!
03:30 PM on 04/30/2012
...oh dear, when the poop hit's the fan, eh Nick? :-/