CHAPTER's 5 & 6
SNATCH SQUADS
Arrest and Restraint Team and Stalking Team Tactics and Training
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Snatch Squads
Introduction
Snatch squads are divided into two categories, Arrest and Restraint Teams and Stalking Teams. The duties and tactics of these two groups are interrelated. This chapter will explain some of the training, planning and preparation used by Snatch Squads. This should give the reader a more realistic appraisal of the skills required for this form of combat.
This chapter will be divided into four sections.
Introduction
Arrest and Restraint Teams are employed in urban environments. They are responsible for detaining individuals for processing through the intelligence and legal system. Arrest and Restraint Teams are constrained by minimum force requirements in their application of restraints and rear attacks. These teams are usually supported by armed and mobile units.
Composition of the Teams
Ideally a 4 person team should be employed to pick up one individual. In a riot situation there are three basic methods of deployment. The first two start from behind friendly lines. This is not the most productive method because the target can see the team coming. Also, the target is difficult to reach without members of the team being injured or captured themselves.
Basic Principles
The four basic principles of come alongs are;
The Nerve Points
Figure 1 illustrates the areas of the human body where the nervous system crosses the bones. Either strikes or direct pressure to these point will press the nerves against the bone. These attacks can cause a few seconds of either mental or physical shock which gives you time to apply the restraint. Both forms of Snatch Squad utilise these Nerve Points.
The nerve points numbered from 1-8 are located on both sides of the body. This gives a total of 16 points to attack.
Figure 1
Point 1 - The Superscapular Nerve. This located centrally on the ridge of muscle that runs from the base of the neck below the ear lobe to the shoulder. Hit downwards with the hammer fist, chop or baton edge. Avoid striking to the front of this ridge because you run the risk of breaking the collar bone.
Point 2 - The Femoral Nerve This is located in front of the hip joint where the stomach and leg create a fold. Hit straight in to collapse the leg or jackknife the upper body forward. Hit with a side kick, punch, baton butt or point.
Point 3 - The Sciatic and Tibial Nerves These are located centrally, behind the thigh bone, extending from the fold of the back side to the knee fold. Hit in using toe or side kicks, baton point or butt.
Point 4 - The Posterior Tibial Nerve This is located centrally on the calf muscles of both legs. Hit in using toe kicks, side kicks, thumb pressure, baton point or butt.
Point 5 - The Common Peroneal Nerve This is located on the outside of the thigh, four finger widths above the knee cap. Hit in using side kicks, knee kicks, roundhouse shin kicks or the baton edge. Striking too low, on the side of the knee cap, will break the leg.
Point 6 - The Saphenous Nerve This is located to the soft inner side of the thigh, four finger widths above the knee cap. Hit in at an angle to impact the nerve against the thigh bone. Use toe kicks, knees, baton point or butt.
Point 7 - The Median Nerve, Ulnar Nerve and Radius Nerve This cluster of nerves are most vulnerable two finger widths above the elbow joint. They are on the soft side of the upper arm which lies next to the ribs. Hit this area with a reverse knife hand, punch or baton edge to impact the nerves agains the bone of the upper arm and collapse the arm into the hammer lock position.
Point 8 - The Supercavicular Nerve This is located behind the ridge of neck muscle just below the ear lobes. It can be attacked with palm heel, baton edge or chops to this ridge of muscle..
The human body will react in specific ways to nerve point attacks, you can confirm this with hands on training. For example, in order to apply a straight arm bar, get the opponent to jack knife forward with both arms outstretched by punching to the hip joint area (Point 2).
Arrest and Restraint Techniques
The following techniques involve the use of minimum force to achieve your objectives. If you are well trained in these techniques you will find that the physiological damage caused is usually temporary with little or no long term damage.
The locking techniques, if carried to their conclusion, will result in either breaks or dislocations. In arrest and restraint the joint locks are used only as a pain compliance tool. You want to achieve physical control of the resisting individual, even when the resistance is passive.
All the strikes and joint locks applied during operations are not done to either satisfy your need for revenge or punish the individual. The target will be easier to handle over long distances if you can employ pain compliance techniques. The techniques are used with the express purpose of;
Sometimes it will be necessary to take an opponent to the ground in order to restrain them. Make sure that you take the opponent down on their face so that you or your team will not be kicked and punched by the prone opponent. The face down restraint offers you more protection but it is inherently dangerous for an opponent who may be either phychologically or physiologically challanged or under the influence of drugs. It is your objective to keep the opponent alive. You must be conversant with the relevant first aid procedures for dealing with the adverse effects of face down restraints.
Jacket Grabs
If the opponent is wearing a jacket, chop Point 1 and grab the collar from the back and pull it down off their shoulders. This will pin their arms at the elbows.
If the opponent is wearing a jacket, chop Point 1 and then grab the bottom of the jacket from the rear and pull it, along with the collar, over the opponents head. This again will pin the opponents arms at the elbow.
From the rear, grab the shoulder pads of the jacket, lift up and pull the opponent off balance to the rear. The opponent can be moved short distances in this manner.
Belt Lifts
From the rear, lift the opponent up by the belt line with one hand. With the other hand press forward with your thumb on the hollow at the base of the skull. As an alternative, punch your fist through the targets legs and grasp the front of their pants. Press on the back of the skull to move them forward.
If the target is sitting down, apply thumb pressure in a forward direction to the top of the jaw in front of the ear lobe. When the target tries to remove your hands, apply a wrist lock. The thumb pressure is pressing the nerve against the jaw bone to cause the distraction.
Straight Arm Bar
For the straight arm bar to work efficiently, two points must be met. First, the anchor for the hold is approximately three fingers above the elbow joint on the tricep muscle (Fig 2a). Second, the wrist must be torqued so that the palm is facing up as in figure 2b. The illustration in figure 2c shows the palm in the incorrect position, the palm must face up in order to achieve full control.
The Minor Goose Neck
(Figs 3a & b) This simple wrist lock is achieved by first grabbing the opponents right arm at the wrist with your right hand. The main purpose of this initial grab is to collapse the opponents wrist forward into the goose neck position. Then move into the opponents right side, swivelling on the toes to draw you in close to the opponent, transferring your left arm below their right arm. At this stage place your left palm on the back of the captured hand. The best position is near or on the knuckles so that maximum pressure is exerted on the captured wrist. The opponents fingers must be pointing down.
The Hammer Lock
This can be applied from the front if you first chop down on the center of the shoulder muscle (Point 1) to weaken the whole arm (Fig 4a) and grab the opponents right wrist with your left hand.
This is followed by punching into the base of the bicep on the inner part of the elbow (Point 7) with your right fist (Fig 4b).
Alternatively, use a reverse knife hand against Point 7. Fold up the captured arm by lifting the arm at the elbow joint and move in behind the opponent (Fig 4c).
This lock must be reinforced by pulling back on the opponents left shoulder, otherwise they can turn out of the hold .
Finger and Thumb Locks
(Fig 5) The fingers are vulnerable to dislocation when they are bent away from the palm.
With a good all round grip on a single finger, it is possible to control an individual by simply cocking your wrist so that the little finger edge of your hand is putting pressure on the captured finger joint. The real value in this hold is the fact that you can control the direction the opponent movement by getting the palm of the captured hand to face the direction you want the opponent to face.
Training Programme
It will always prove difficult to apply minimum force on an opponent who is not cooperating. In some cases, the aggression displayed by the opposition my demand more force. The rules of engagement must be clear on this point so that the soldiers can operate and achieve the objectives required of them. The Arrest Teams behavior must reflect the degree of hostility displayed by the opposition. The team must dominate their environment in order to operate successfully.
The training programme should go through four stages;
Section 2 - Stalking Teams
Introduction
Stalking Teams are employed in rural environments, the battlefield. They are responsible for much more than the capture of targeted individuals. They are also responsible for the disabling or killing of enemy sentries and patrol members. In many instances the minimum force tactics used by Arrest and Restraint Teams may be useful and in some situations. These minimum force tactics can be used to set up the enemy for more lethal tactics. Stalking Teams usually operate alone with limited support. The silent killing techniques employed by Stalking Teams have been omitted from this web page by the author.
Composition of the Teams
Capture or kill operations are usually carried out by a 4 person team. All team members must carry either improvised or manufactured gags, blindfolds, hand and leg cuffs. These items must be ready for quick and silent use, even in total darkness.
Team Leader. The Team Leader is also used as cover for the Attacker when the team are close to the enemy position. If the attack or capture goes wrong, it is the Leaders job to kill the enemy with a silenced weapon.
Cover. There are usually two employed in the job of cover. Their task is to secure the area outside the scene of the attack. They must give the Attacker confidence to carry out their task without having to worry about side issues. On a capture mission, once the Attacker has the enemy under control, the Covers have a secondary task. The Covers secondary task is to move in, disarm, secure and then carry the enemy out. During this phase, the Leader must provide all round cover. If the enemy is not stunned at this stage they will usually be kicking and screaming. It is imperative that you stay away from their legs until the enemy has been totally subdued.
Attacker. The role of the attacker is to either kill or overpower the enemy. Their fieldcraft training must be of the highest standard in order to achieve this. The final approach to the target will depend upon the terrain and the enemy routines. If the Attacker is spotted on the stalk in, it is the duty of the Team Leader to kill the enemy with a silenced weapon. For this to happen the Attacker must get out of the line of sight of the Team Leader. The Attacker must be trained in dealing with different types of sentry, dress and weapon carriage methods.
The Three Phases of The Silent Attack
The aim of the silent attack is to despatch or capture the enemy without giving away your own presence. There are few, if any real guaranteed methods of silent attack, but the amount of noise created is minimal when compared to conventional battlefield noises.
Capture Tactics
These are usually rear attacks which will be covered in more detail in Section 4 of this chapter. One method of capture is the rear knee take down with a hand clamp over the enemy mouth. A strong pair of gloves will assist in this act and also protect you from bites to the hand. The next priority is to stun the enemy by striking the neck muscle below the ear lobe,or else disable their arms so that they loose control of their weapon. This action is used to stop the enemy from firing their weapon and thus compromising the team. From this rear attack position, it is possible to maintain the mouth clamp and step round to stamp the weapon out of the enemy hands.
Stalking Exercise
Before you consider the team training required for silent attacks, you must be capable of reaching the enemy position first. The last 20 meters are the most difficult to cover without being detected. There are many simple exercises that prove this point. For example, pair off the students, each pair are designated a separate 30 meter box of terrain to exercise in. One student sits in the middle of their box, with a blind fold on. It is the task of the other student to stalk as close as possible to their partner without being detected. If, at any stage, the blindfolded partner detects the others presence, they must turn and face the direction of the approach. It is then the turn of the detected partner to act as sentry.
The art of stalking can only be mastered by constant practice in varying terrains. Once you are within 10 meters of the sentry you are in a position to carry out a rush attack. At this distance, it is possible to overpower the sentry before they can react to your final run in. The team work and fieldcraft standards must be very high. Outlined below is an example of the conduct of a stalking exercise. This plan can be adjusted to suit your standard of training and the operational conditions.
Planning
Brief the Stalking Teams
The Exercise
End of the Exercise
Stalking Team Mission Aide Memoir
Section 3 - Offensive Grappling Techniques
Introduction
This section contains material on offensive grappling techniques. These may prove useful for stalking teams because enemy prisoners will neither be quiet or passive. The techniques will create maximum damage and because of this, they must not be used in situations where minimum force is the requirement.
Temples (Fatal Results)
Kick with either the heel or ball of the foot. From the front, use a palm heel hook. From the side, use a palm heel thrust. A head butt can also be used, particularly after a throwing technique fails (Fig. 7).
Eyes (Permanent Damage)
Use the finger tips, knife edge chop, palm heel or thumbs. The eyes of the grappler are should always be attacked at some stage of the fight.
Ears (Permanent Damage)
Cupped hands clapped over the ears can damage the ear drums. Attack the ears from any angle, particularly when fighting a grappler. As a restraint, grab and turn your wrist down to hold the opponent down. You can also threaten to rip off the ear by holding the ear in one hand and chopping down (Fig. 8).
Nose (Permanent Damage)
Almost any part of the body can be used to attack the nose. The force of the attack can be increased if you pull forward on the opponents collar or hair (Fig. 9). Also grip the back of the head to use a head butting sequence of at least five butts.
Jaw (Permanent Damage)
Palm heel the jaw area beside the ear lobe to knock out the opponent and break the jaw.
Neck (Fatal Results)
When attacking the opponents neck from the front, cup your right hand under their chin. Your left hand goes round the back of their head so that you can wrench their head counter clockwise (Fig. 10).
If their chin can be forced toward their left shoulder, you can cause a dislocation. This technique can be used to escape from loose waist holds, bear hugs or to force the opponent to move away from you.
Neck (Fatal Results)
Put your opponent on their knees and wrap your right arm round their mouth. Try to place your right hand round the back of their head. This will bring your right shoulder in close to their head. Reinforce this initial grip with your left arm close to your mouth and round the right side of the opponents head. Twist the head clockwise as fast as possible to cause maximum damage to the neck vertebra (Fig 11a).
Neck (Fatal Results)
The combined arm bar and head lock (Fig11b) can cause fatal damage. If you either fall back, lift the opponent up or push your chest out, it is possible to break the opponents neck.
Adam's Apple (Fatal Results)
Either bite, chop, punch or toe kick to destroy the air passage to the chest.
Collar Bones (Permanent Damage)
These two bones run out from the throat hollow to the shoulders. They can be broken by, chops, hammerfist, head butts or batons. The approach must be slightly vertical (Fig 12), so that the force of the blow is not absorbed by the shoulder muscle. If the impact does land on the shoulder muscle, it will have a temporary stunning effect.
Fingers (Temporary Damage)
Bend the fingers away from the palm. With an all round grasp of a persons finger it is possible to apply a restraint. By simply cocking your wrist and pulling on the held finger, the restraint is applied.
Ribs (Fatal Results)
The lower sets of ribs are more susceptible to breakage. the older the opponent, the more susceptible they are to bone breakages. Attack the ribs with head butts, toe kicks, elbows and side kicks (Fig 13).
Back (Fatal Results)
With your opponent lying face down, grab their ankles and lift their feet as high as possible (Fig 14). Stamp on the small of their back to sever the spinal column (Fig 15).
Legs (Permanent Damage)
If you catch the opponent with their weight on their leading leg, execute a straight leg heel jab below the knee cap (Fig 16). Also use a spooning kick to the side of the kneecap (Fig 17).
Either the heel or the shin can be used in this attack.
The standing leg lock can be used to restrain the opponent (Fig 18). The bony part of your forearm is used to exert pressure on the lower part of the opponents calf. You can exert extra pressure on this nerve by leaning back and lifting up with your left forearm.
The Wedge Lock ( Fig 19) can stress the knee and ankle joints. Grab the opponents left foot and push it forward. Your own leg must lie across the back of their knee joint.
Ankles and Instep (Permanent Damage)
To dislocate the ankle, grab the toes with both hands, place your armpit over the heel and turn your body rapidly to the right (Fig 20a & b). Variation (Fig 21).
The Sleeper Hold (Fatal Results)
To apply this strangle, squeeze both sides of the neck and push the opponents head forward. Unconsciousness should take place within 6 seconds. The two ridges of muscle that run from below the ears to the shoulders have one main function. They protect the veins and arteries going to and from the brain. After you wedge the opponents neck with your leg, the act of pushing the opponents head forward will push these ridges of muscle back. This reveals the veins and arteries and allows you to close them off (Fig 22).
Section 4 - Rear Attacks
Introduction
The attacks illustrated in this section can be used;
Standing Choke Hold
Before starting this technique, use chops to the neck to weaken the opponent. Place your hand on the opponents right shoulder with your palm facing up (Fig 23a). Your left forearm is placed across the front of the opponents throat with your palms coming together on the opponents right shoulder. Keep your forearm as low as possible on the throat at this stage. Pull back on your left elbow and right hand while pressing your head and chest close to the opponent. To stop the opponent from either throwing you or wrestling out of the hold, break their balance back with one of your knees in the small of their back (Fig23 b).
Figure 23c illustrates a stronger variation of this choke. This choke hold can be modified slightly so that it becomes a strangle (a Sleeper Hold). Consider the last illustration in Section 3. Instead of the forearm crossing the front of the throat, the elbow joint is positioned to the front of the throat so that the opponent can breathe. The role of the forearm and bicep is to apply pressure to the sides of the neck. This is done after you jerk the hold on to displace the neck muscles and expose the veins and arteries.
Knee Joint Take Down
Stamp the edge of your foot into the back of the opponents knee joint (Fig24). Strike down at an angle of 45 degrees. This technique can be speeded up by;
Sweeping Ankle
In this attack, block the opponents right leg any where below the kneecap with your right leg. While you are employing the foot block, grab the opponents shoulders or face and throw them back and to the right.
Knee Trip
Pull the opponent back off balance and step in to the side of the opponent (Fig 25a). Crouch down, keeping your body close to the opponents and keep pulling back. The opponent will fall over your hip or knee. This can be assisted by pushing on either the eyes or throat (Fig 25b).
Crotch Lift
Punch your fist through the opponents crotch and grab at the testicles. Lift the opponent up and push forward with your other hand on the base of their skull (Fig26a). Finish off with a restraint if required (Fig 26b).
Shoulder Charge and Knee Lift
Strike the opponent in the back with your shoulder to break their balance forward. At the same time reach down and grab the legs below knee cap level. Lift up and back (Fig 27a). Finish off with a restraint if required (Fig 27b).
Forearm Smash
Grab the opponents left wrist in your left hand and pull their arm straight back from their body (Fig 28a). In order to apply tension to the elbow joint ensure that your fingers are in contact with the thumb side of their wrist. This will allow you to twist the wrist, applying torque, and thus present the opponents tricep muscle for the next stage of the attack. Land a right forearm smash to the center of the tricep muscle to temporarily disable the arm (Fig 28b). Strike further down, near the back of the elbow joint to break the arm if necessary.
Wrist Lock
The offensive wrist lock can be used to either apply a standing restraint or to throw the opponent down. Grab the opponents right palm with your right thumb on the back of their wrist. Reinforce this hold with the other hand so that you can torque the wrist clockwise and throw the opponent forward (Fig 29a & b).
The opponent can be thrown back if you initially grab their right palm with your left hand coming down to the front of their forearm. Again reinforce the grab with the right hand and torque the wrist counterclockwise to throw the opponent back.
Straight Arm Bar
Grab the opponents wrist and cock your leg for a roundhouse kick to the solar plexus (Fig 30a). After the kick twist the opponents wrist so that their palm is facing up. Also bear down with all your weight on their tricep muscle or just above the elbow joint (Fig 30b).
Try http://www.adtdl.army.mil/cgi-bin/adtl.dll/FM/19-15/ch12.htm
This site offers the US Army Manual FM19-15 on dealing with Crowd Disturbances. This includes the use of the baton and the use of restraints.
If this link is not operating also try http://www.adtdl.army.mil and go to the library and check out the field manuals for Military police, that is where FM19-15 is located.
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