Police Storm Flat To End Armed Stand-Off

By Sky News SkyNews - Tuesday, May 6 10:17 pm

Police using stun grenades stormed a flat to end a stand-off with an armed man who had fired at officers in London.

Sky News Home Affairs correspondent Mark White said half a dozen explosions were heard.

"I can confirm that the gunman has been injured," he said.

Sky reporter Alistair Bunkall said he saw a man, whom he believed to be the gunman, being given resuscitation.

Paramedics had been seen moving towards a block of flats in the Markham Square area, off King's Road in Chelsea.

Police had been called after members of the public heard gunshots.

Officers came under fire and a police spokesman confirmed that they returned the fire.

The gunman fired more shots from the house just after 9pm, police said. Again, officers returned fire.

One eyewitness told Sky News: "From what I heard it seems to have been a domestic argument.

"I was in one of the stores three or four doors down from where it happened.

"I was in a changing room and a lady came in very panicked and crying and screaming a little bit.

"It seemed that her ex-partner was the one shooting - I don't know if he was shooting at her.

"It seemed that an argument started and, as she put it, it got out of hand. There was also a gentleman with her. I don't know if he was anything to do with the argument but it seems that it was of that nature."

A police officer at a cordon told local residents that shots were fired out of a jewellery shop called Folli Follie on the King's Road opposite the entrance to Markham Square, although this could not be confirmed.

The shots came from a house in Markham Square, hitting a home opposite.

The owner of the house which came under fire told Sky News the gunman is a man in his late twenties with dark hair, who was brandishing a shotgun.

He fired into one of her second floor bedrooms, sending shot spraying over pictures in the room and breaking the window.

She was outside with a friend, heard gunshots and went upstairs to see him re-loading the gun.

The woman said: "It's just very strange. I think it's going to hit me tomorrow, I don't know why someone was shooting at my house.

"I have no idea who he is, I've never seen him in my life."

A brother and sister out shopping on the King's Road told how they saw armed officers running away from Markham Square in a panic after the shots were fired, shouting: "Get the hell out, this is serious."

Georges Gillioz, 29, and his sister Poppy saw officers on either side of a doorway in the square.

Then suddenly they heard about six shots, which they described as having a "pop pop pop" sound like a pistol rather than a machine gun.

Ms Gillioz, a personal assistant, recalled seeing the first police arrive moments earlier.

She said: "I noticed them putting their weapons together, then saw them position themselves.

"Then I saw them getting their riot shields out. They were covering a door in Markham Square.

"Then there was the sound of commotion, then shots - I can't remember in what order.

"Four armed officers ran down on to the King's Road away from there. They looked panicked."

• Email Story
• IM Story
• Printable View
• Blog This
• Post a Comment

Recommend this article

Sponsored Links

(What’s this?)