Victoria Police and the Australian Federal Police have confirmed a 14-year-old boy arrested in the UK on Saturday was linked to an alleged Islamic State-inspired attack in Australia.

Police said investigators received information from UK authorities after they allegedly uncovered communications between the teenager and a man in Australia.

The boy from Blackburn, Lancashire was arrested on Saturday “on suspicion of being concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism and remains in police custody for questioning,” Greater Manchester Police in north-west England said in a statement.

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“Following the examination of a number of electronic devices, the North West Counter Terrorism Unit and officers from Lancashire Constabulary executed a warrant at an address in Blackburn, Lancashire.”

Detective Chief Superintendent Tony Mole, from the North West Counter Terrorism Unit (NWCTU), said: “We have uncovered communication between an individual in the North West and a man in Australia to what we believe is a credible terrorist threat.”

“As soon as this information came to light we acted quickly with the relevant authorities here and abroad and this has resulted with officers from the NWCTU arresting a teenager,” he said.

“The nature of the communication is currently under full assessment and subject to investigation.”

Victoria Police have declined to expand on the nature of the communication, saying it would form part of the investigation and “therefore it would be inappropriate to comment further”.

The Melbourne Joint Counter Terrorism Team maintains strong links with authorities across the world and it is this collaborative approach and commitment to our security which will ensure the safety of the Australian public, Victoria Police said.

Meanwhile, two Melbourne men have been charged in relation to an alleged planned terrorist attack on an Anzac Day ceremony in Melbourne.

On Saturday, Victoria Police and the Australian Federal Police arrested five men in pre-dawn raids in Melbourne’s south-east, as part of an ongoing investigation into a suspected terror plot aimed at Anzac events in Victoria.

Victoria Police confirmed on Monday that an 18-year-old Narre Warren man has been charged with weapons offences.

Sevdet Ramdan Besim, 18, of Hallam, was charged on Saturday with conspiracy to commit acts done in preparation for, or planning, terrorist acts under section 101.6 of the Commonwealth Criminal Code Act 1995.

He faced the Melbourne Magistrate’s Court on Saturday and was remanded to re-appear at court on Friday, April 24.

Police said an 18-year-old Hampton Park man is being held on a Preventative Detention Order. He remains in custody and has not been charged.

They said two other Narre Warren men, aged 18 and 19, have been released pending further enquiries.

– with ABC/AAP