Erm, it seems like there should be image links to photo's in a lot of your post - but they're not there. Correct, or am I reading things incorrectly??

Your "Dodgy or what????" guy looks to be a Sikh wearing a traditional turban (most Arabs , for example, do not wear them)

He is almost certainly carrying a concealed ceremonial sword called a Kirban, which although it could be used as a weapon, it is an "insult to the Sikh religion" to regard it merely as a concealed weapon.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1668152.stm

Hi wtwu,
Thanks for the feedback,
The item under the jacket was rectangular, about 2 inches thick and about 15 inches wide and wrapped around his back...more akin to a couple of phone books lying side to side.

Hi Jonty,
Probably ;-)