The police initially said that they could not confirm that the woman was definitely Lewthwaite "unless and until she is captured" and said: "Samantha Lewthwaite is one of the names in our records.
Polisi awalnya mengatakan bahwa mereka tidak bisa mengkonfirmasi bahwa wanita itu pasti Lewthwaite "kecuali dan sampai ia ditangkap" dan berkata: "Samantha Lewthwaite adalah salah satu nama dalam catatan kami.