Man shot by Met Police after threats to kill

After being targeted by Metropolitan Police officers who stormed a house in north-east London by force, a man has life-changing injuries. According to reports of a man with a gunmaking threat to kill, officers had been sent to an address in Stow Crescent, Walthamstow, about 10:00 bBSTw on Friday. After receiving a bang inside, trained negotiators were dispatched to the scene, and about 14:00 officers stormed the home and discharged their weapons. The Met said they found what they suspected to be a pistol inside the house. According to the force, the incident was being traced to the Department of Professional Standards, which would refer it to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

The Met said it had been called to the house, but the man was alone inside. He was trying to hurt himself, and after a few hours, he threatened to seriously hurt anyone coming into the house and shoot himself, according to the police. The facts of what happened before the officers arrived and when they were inside would form part of an investigation, according to the Met.

'Incredibly rare'

According to the Met, the man was treated by police medics and the London Ambulance Service and is now in hospital. People have been asked to stay away from the area, where a police cordon remains in place.

Our thoughts at this moment are with the injured man and his family,

Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist said.

I know this information will be troubling for the people in Walthamstow and London's greater public. However, I want to remind you that officer discharges their handguns are extremely unusual.

It is correct that there is an complete probe into the circumstances surrounding this incident,

says the Independent Office for Police Conduct. This process must take place, and although it is still underway, it would be inappropriate for us to speculate further.

We can confirm that we have opened an independent probe into the Met Police's conduct during an incident in Walthamstow, east London, in which a man was shot by police this afternoon and admitted to hospital. "They said they had sent investigators to the scene and started the post-incident process for gathering evidence. On Soundsand, watch the best of BBC Radio London on Soundsand.