A specialist firearms officer told today how close he came to shooting one of the alleged July 21 bombers in the head when they found him standing in a bath wearing what they feared was a rucksack filled with explosives, a court heard today.

Wearing full body armour and helmets, and heavily armed, officers burst into a house in Birmingham where Yassin Omar was hiding during a dawn raid on July 27.

His arrest came six days after the alleged extremist Muslim plot to blow up parts of the London transport network failed.

Officers told Woolwich Crown Court, South London, how stun grenades were thrown into every room before a violent struggle ensued with the defendant.

One officer said he punched 26-year-old Mr Omar - who was fully clothed - as hard as he could in the face while another repeatedly stunned him with a Taser gun.

At one point another officer had the safety catch off his sub-machine gun and was aiming his weapon at the back of Omar’s head.

The officer, identified only as PC 7512, told the court: “In all honesty, I still don’t know to this day how I did not shoot him.”

Mr Omar was eventually dragged out of the bathroom to the kitchen where his trousers and shirt were ripped off and the rucksack cut from his back.

Evidence about the dramatic arrest came from three officers from the firearms operational unit of West Midlands Police who stormed the house in Birmingham.

The court was told how Mr Omar fled London the day after the alleged attacks by disguising himself in a burkha and travelling to the Midlands city by bus.

He sought refuge in the unobtrusive red brick terraced house until he was tracked down by police, the court was told.

Twelve armed specialists stormed the house just after 5am on July 27 after being given intelligence that the suspect was there, it was said.

All were dressed in black overalls, body armour, helmets and carrying Heckler and Koch carbine sub-machine guns as well as Taser stun guns, the jury was told.

Mr Omar, from New Southgate in north London, is one of six defendants who deny charges of conspiracy to murder and conspiracy to cause explosions likely to endanger life.

His co-defendants are Muktar Said Ibrahim, 29, of Stoke Newington, north London, Adel Yahya, 29, of High Road, Tottenham, north London, Manfo Kwaku Asiedu, 33, of no fixed address, Hussain Osman, 28, of no fixed address and Ramzi Mohammed, 25, of North Kensington, west London.

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