Hero soldier chases Taliban bomber over minefield

Irish Guardsman Lewis Wilby was weighed down by more than 60lbs of kit when he spotted the insurgent laying improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in the village of Rahim Kalay in the Upper Gereshk Valley, Afghanistan.

The bomber immediately fled and 26-year-old Guardsman Wilby sprinted after him across uncleared ground where IEDs were known to have been laid.

He found him hiding in a village compound nearby, the MoD said.

Insurgents had been under surveillance for 48 hours, and were watched overnight as they laid IEDs in one of the most northerly and isolated places in the British area of operations in Helmand.

He said: “These two insurgents had been watched by surveillance laying IEDs, and we were tasked to detain them - so that’s what we did. The adrenaline was pumping as we chased them to a compound but it was so satisfying when we detained the insurgent and took him to be arrested.

“I had to run through an IED belt which is not something I want to try again - but I made the judgment that, by watching carefully the route that the insurgent took, and following it as closely as possible, I would be ok.

“It feels like a massive achievement, because we’ve caught a bloke who wanted to hurt my comrades. We’ve had a tough time, but knowing I got a guy who has laid IEDs to try to kill us makes me happy.”

Guardsman Wilby is originally from Wakefield, Yorkshire, but his family are now based in Neston, Cheshire.