Man in his 50s is shot in the leg by police after ‘armed robber stole lorry in Swindon’
- Lorry was stolen at gunpoint in Westlea, Swindon, just after 5pm on Tuesday
- Police stopped the lorry nearby and a man in his 50s was shot in the leg
- He was airlifted to hospital and police say his injuries are not life-threatening
Police shot a man in his 50s this evening after an armed robber wielding a handgun stole a lorry.
Armed police were called out after a lorry was stolen from the Rivermead Industrial Estate in Westlea, Swindon, just after 5pm today.
Officers managed to stop the vehicle in nearby Ridge Green, where they say a ‘police firearm was discharged’.
Armed police fired one shot at a man in his 50s after a lorry was stolen in a suspected armed robbery in Swindon on Tuesday
Police closed a road after they intercepted a lorry which had been stolen Westlea earlier today
Witnesses claim to have heard police telling a man to ‘put the gun down’ before a shot was fired in Ridge Green, near Swindon
Witnesses claim to have heard police telling a man to ‘put the gun down’ before a shot was fired.
A man in his 50s was flown to hospital for treatment to a leg wound.
Wiltshire Police say his injuries are not thought to be life-threatening.
Armed police joined officers from Wiltshire Police following an armed robbery on Tuesday evening
Superintendent Phil Staynings said: ‘I want to reassure the community that this incident was dealt with swiftly.
‘Nobody else was injured and the incident is now contained.
‘However, people living in the area will have seen a heavy police presence, which will continue throughout the evening.
‘Due to the fact that a police firearm was discharged, we have automatically referred the incident to the Independent Office for Police Conduct.’