London tourist's illegally parked car blown-up by police

A London tourist had his car blown up by anti-terrorist officers after it broke down - and he was also given a parking ticket.

Nima Hosseini Razi, 32, said his Ford Mondeo had broken down in early hours of Wednesday close to the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey.

He said he had left a note on the car to say: "This car is broke. Please do not fine me," before going sightseeing.

But when he returned hours later, "the boot was blown off".

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "We can confirm there was a suspect vehicle at Storey's Gate at 10.20am on Wednesday and a controlled explosion took place... the incident was subsequently deemed as non-suspicious."

Westminster Conservative Councillor Daniel Astaire said: "On this occasion the driver was parked in a very dangerous place, on yellow lines, so police instructed our parking attendant to issue the driver with a ticket."

Mr Razi, who is studying for an MBA at the University of Wales, said he had left a note on his car explaining: "Dear Sir or Madam, this car is broken. I am just waiting for the AA to arrive. Please do not fine! Thank you, yours sincerely."

He said he had gone off to visit some of London's sights, including Buckingham Palace, but when he returned to the car "the windows were smashed in pieces. I was completely shocked".

"Police wanted to remove the car. They covered the car with some of my stuff left in it.

"On the window, they had fined me."

He added: "The police's actions were extremely arrogant and unprofessional.

"They treated me like a terrorist. They were never interested in listening to my real story."

Scotland Yard has not responded to Mr Razi's comments.