REMEMBER WHEN

GOLD COAST BULLETIN Saturday July 23, 2005

POLICE shot dead a suspected suicide bomber at an Underground station in south London as images of four wanted men were released.

“We can confirm that just after 10am today armed officers shot a male at Stockwell Underground station,” said a spokesman for the city’s Metropolitan Police.

The shooting was directly linked to attempted bombings earlier in the week, he said.

The man had been challenged by police and was killed after refusing to obey instructions. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

“They pushed him on to the floor and unloaded five shots into him. He’s dead,” said witness Mark Whitby.

Mr Whitby said it didn't look as if the man was carrying anything but he was wearing a thick coat that looked padded – unusual for summer in Britain.

Another passenger, Briony Coetsee, said: “We were on the tube (Underground train) and then we suddenly heard someone say: ‘Get out! Get out!’ Then we heard gunshots,”

Chris Wells, who was evacuated from an Underground train at Stockwell, said he saw about 20 police officers, some armed, rushing into the station before a man jumped over the barriers with police giving chase.

“There were at least 20 of them (officers) and they were carrying big, black guns,” he said.

It was soon revealed that the police had shot and killed Jean Charles de Menezes, a Brazilian man who was mistaken for a fugitive. Following two investigations, an inquest into the incident returned an open verdict.