21/07/2011

Searches Follow Met Cop Shooting Arrests

The PSNI has arrested two men following the shooting of a police officer in south Croydon earlier this month.

On Wednesday evening the men, aged 20 and 26, were arrested at a house in south Belfast and a number of items were removed from the Lisburn Road premises for examination.

Both men are being questioned about the attempted murder with the 26-year-old suspect being flown to London later for questioning, while the 20-year-old is still being held in Northern Ireland.

Last Friday the unarmed policeman was shot on Kingsdown Avenue while chasing three men.

The male PC is believed to have been chasing the men at around 10pm on July 15 when one of them opened fire and shot him in the arm.

Met Police officers then travelled to Northern Ireland this week to take custody of the 26-year-old man, who is now on route to London for questioning about the attempted murder.

Two other men have already been charged in connection with the shooting.

Adewale Ogunsanya, aged 22, of Leigham Court Road, Streatham, south London, and Demar Provan, aged 21, of no fixed address, appeared at Croydon Magistrates' Court on July 18 charged with possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life and possessing ammunition.

They are due at Croydon Crown Court on September 23.

The injured Met officer received the personal thanks of outgoing Met Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson, who visited him as he was recovering over the weekend

Crime Alert

Meanwhile a senior PSNI officer has warned of disruption a few miles beyond the south Belfast thoroughfare where the arrest took place.

Supt Philip Knox said that, "an ongoing policing operation necessitating closure of part of Knockmore Road, Lisburn, and said this means drivers should "best avoid the area if possible".

It is not yet known if the incident is in anyway connected to the arrest of the London shooting suspects, along the Lisburn Road yesterday.

A police spokesman told 4ni.co.uk this afternoon there wasn't thought to be any connection at this time.

However, the PSNI issued a statement to say that the ongoing search is in relation to organised crime - and is not terrorist related - and also that it has caused road closures in the Causeway End Road of Lisburn, near Knockmore.

A number of guns have been discovered by officers from the PSNI's Organised Crime Branch and Army bomb experts and the police are currently at the scene where the road has been closed.

(BMcC/GK)

Related Northern Ireland News Stories
Click here for the latest headlines.

19 September 2018
Up To 100 Roads Closed As Storm Ali Hits NI
A growing number of roads across Northern Ireland are closed due to adverse weather conditions as a result of Storm Ali.
02 March 2018
Schools Closures Across NI
The Department of Education have published a list of all schools across that have confirmed they will be closed today, Friday 2nd March, 2018 due to the adverse weather conditions.
20 September 2018
Number Of Roads Remain Closed Following Storm Ali
A number of roads remain closed across Northern Ireland following the damage caused by Storm Ali. The following roads are still closed, however the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) is working to clear the obstructions along with its multiagency partners.
03 February 2017
Police Appeal After Man Attacked In Co Antrim
Police are appealing for information after a man was attacked in Ballymena, Co Antrim. The assault happened in the North Road area at around 3.30am on Sunday, 29 January. A gang of four or five men attacked the victim, aged 37. He was taken to hospital where his condition has been described as "serious".
19 February 2024
Appeal After Masked Men Force Entry Into Home Of Elderly Man
The PSNI have issued an appeal for information after five masked me forced entry into the home of an man aged in his 70s, on the Saintfield Road. Police received a report shortly before 11.30pm on Saturday, 17th February that between 10pm and 10.30pm on the same evening, five masked men entered a house in the Saintfield Road area.