Probe after man is shot dead by police
POLICE watchdogs launched an investigation yesterday after armed officers shot dead a man who claimed to have a gun.
Scotland Yard said they were telephoned shortly before 4am by a man who told them he had a firearm before issuing a number of threats.
Armed officers rushed to the scene in Romford, Essex, and witnesses said they heard “popping” sounds and saw flashing blue police lights.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct began an inquiry after the case was referred to it and the Yard’s Directorate of Professional Standards was informed.
The man – thought to be in his 40s – was shot at around 4.45am and pronounced dead at the scene about half an hour later.
One witness reported seeing a body covered up on the forecourt of a petrol station.
Tracy Green, 39, who lives about 100 yards away, said: “I was just turning over and heard ‘bang, bang’ and thought: ‘Oh, that sounded like gunshots’.”
Linda Leonce, 45, who lives nearby, said: “I was woken by a few kind of ‘pop, pop’ sounds and then there were some sirens.”
Fireman Darren Buckley, 50, who also lives nearby, said: “I didn’t hear gunshots, but seeing all the vehicles I thought it was a car crash or something.
“There was just so much commotion going on outside. It was all kicking off.”
Romford’s Tory MP Andrew Rosindell tweeted: “Shocking incident in Collier Row today, just relieved that no member of the public has been harmed.”
A police spokesman said: “At approximately 04:45hrs a man – believed to be aged in his 40s – was shot by police in the vicinity of Collier Row Road and Lodge Lane.
“He was pronounced dead at the scene at 05:17hrs.”
A spokesman for the Independent Office for Police Conduct said: “We are investigating a fatal police shooting in Romford this morning.”