The police watchdog has launched an investigation after an armed suspect was shot by Scotland Yard officers during a “serious incident” in the capital.
The Metropolitan Police were called to multiple reports of a man with a gun in Creek Road, Greenwich, southeast London just after 2.30pm on Friday afternoon.
Eyewitnesses described hearing a “big bang” as officers confronted the suspect on the side of a bridge.
The man appeared to be “clearly injured”, according to onlooker Gemma Daly.
“Police were tending to a man on the side of the bridge,” Ms Daly, 31, said.
Officers removed his clothing, with “a lot of people” seen working on the man before he was placed on a stretcher, she added.
Police then “started to go around” a silver car pictured on the bridge, Ms Daly said.
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Emergency services, including medics from London’s Air Ambulance, attended the scene.
The man was taken as a priority to a major trauma centre, a London Ambulance Service spokesperson said. His injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
Scotland Yard confirmed a police firearm was discharged and the man sustained a gunshot wound.
The incident is not thought to be terror related, a force spokesperson said, adding that at present, there does not appear to be an “ongoing threat to the wider public”.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is now investigating the shooting.
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A spokesperson said: “Today (Friday), shortly after 4pm we were notified by the (Metropolitan Police Service) that a man had received a gunshot injury as a result of a police shooting during an incident in Greenwich, south London.
“We have begun an independent investigation.
“Our investigators have been sent to the scene and (we have started) the post-incident procedures to start gathering evidence.”
