Armed standoff suspect held over 'cannabis' in west London

A man who barricaded himself inside a house in west London amid fears he had a stockpile of petrol has been arrested after specialist police brought a three-day standoff to an end.

Scotland Yard said officers forced their way into the property in Northolt at about 8.10pm on Sunday after negotiations proved unsuccessful.

The suspect has been arrested on suspicion of the cultivation of cannabis, affray and offences under the explosives act.

Officers had initially been alerted during the early hours of Friday morning.

Armed officers were later seen on Wood End Lane as it emerged that "combustible material" may have been involved.

Around 80 people were evacuated nearby as a precaution, and an area with a radius of 200m sealed off.

Chief Superintendent Paul Martin said: "I am really pleased that this incident has now ended, and importantly ended without anyone coming to harm.

"Our key priority throughout this was to get the man out of the address safely as we had growing concerns about his well-being and believed him to be in crisis.

"After attempts to negotiate over a number of days did not work, we used specialist officers to work out how we could gain entry to the address as safely as we could. They did that this evening."

In an earlier statement, police said: "Whilst it is not known exactly what the man has inside the property police are treating seriously reports that the items appeared hazardous and dangerous, as they are said to include quantities of petrol and combustible material."

There has been no suggestion that what happened was terror-related.

Police said their work at the property would take "some time".

The leader of Ealing Council, Julian Bell, said he was "pleased and relieved" there had been a "peaceful and safe conclusion".

Ealing Police tweeted: "Local residents displaced by the police operation in Northolt are advised that they can now return home. Thank you for your patience."