Armed stand-off in Consett town centre

Jul 14 2008 by Neil Mckay, The Journal

A 28-YEAR-OLD man surrendered to police yesterday after an armed stand-off in a town centre that lasted several hours.

The man surrendered to police in Front Street, Consett, County Durham, shortly before 11am.

Consett town centre had been sealed off some six hours earlier as part of what police described as a “major containment operation” after a man was reported to have a gun.

A police spokesman said armed officers were called in after reports that the armed man was in a flat above Number One Pizzeria on Front Street – the main route through the town.

He said specialist negotiators were brought in and shortly after 6am a number of people including three men, a woman and two young children came out of the building leaving the alleged gunman alone.

Shortly after 11am the spokesman said: “We can now confirm that a 28-year-old man, believed to be a foreign national, surrendered himself to police.

“He was arrested on suspicion of making threats to kill and possessing a firearm and has been taken Consett Police Station for questioning.

“Armed police teams involved in the incident have now been stood down and a search of the premises known as Number One Pizzeria, as well as the flat above, is to be carried out by a specialist police team.”

Traffic – including buses – was diverted away from Front Street while the stand-off was ongoing.

During the stand-off Chief Inspector Ivan Wood, in charge of the operation, stressed that the main aim of police was “to exercise patience and to mini- mise the danger to the public, to police officers, and indeed to the man inside the flat”.

He added that officers had been trying to keep town centre disruption to “an absolute minimum”.

The man was last night bailed pending further enquiries.