Siege in Oxford as gunman holes up in flat after police shoot-out
ARMED police were in a city centre stand-off with a gunman in Oxford last night.
Shots had been fired by both the gunman and officers on the scene before police tried to negotiate with him.
Officers had been called just after 1pm to a flat in the city’s Paradise Square, and police warned the public not to go near the area as they shut off neighbouring streets.
The ambulance service said that one person had been treated for injuries that were not life-threatening.
One woman said that she had been on her balcony when she heard loud bangs, shouting and dogs barking.
‘After a second round it became apparent these were gunshots so I rushed inside,’ she said.
‘There was a couple more shots, three spurts in total, still a lot of shouting and barking.
‘I heard a man shout, “Show me your hands,” repeatedly.
‘The shouting continued and only quieted down an hour later or so, between now and then there have been bursts of shouting, barks and helicopters.
‘The entire area outside my flat is sealed off, and there is a police officer with a dog stationed a few metres from the balcony.’
One neighbour said that he knew the man involved, who had appeared to be in a troubled state on Sunday.
Damien Karkinsky, 38, said: ‘It was very scary. We were having a barbecue and he just came out on his balcony and sat there and stared at us for ten minutes.
‘He had this wild look in his eyes. One of my friends asked if he was okay. Then he just went back inside.’
Another neighbour said: ‘I know all his family.
‘This will be a very sad and distressing time for them.’
Janet Borgerson, visiting Britain from the US, was at the nearby Malmaison hotel when she heard ‘explosive cracks’ that she had thought were firecrackers before guests were ushered inside by staff.
At least four masked policeman were seen entering the police cordon, while helicopters circled overhead.
A 27-year-old master’s student who lives in Paradise Square said she saw officers running down the street, adding: ‘They had shields and massive guns.
‘I went outside to see what was going in but the police told me to go in. I heard more than five shots total definitely.’
Dean Dwyer, 21, had been drinking in the nearby Jolly Farmer pub when police arrived at the scene. He said: ‘There was one armed and two unarmed police officers coming down the road.
‘One of the officers came up to me and said, “You need to move along quite quickly.” So I went into the next pub and ordered a pint. While we were in there we heard a gunshot.
‘There was a lot of commotion with policeman running around putting up barriers and ambulances arriving on the scene.’
Thames Valley Police said that armed officers had been called to a residential property following a report shortly after 1.15pm that a man had access to a firearm. They said: ‘Shots were fired from the property and police returned fire.’
‘Entire area was sealed off’