Man Shot Dead By Police After Car Crash on A11 in Norfolk
A man has died after being shot by police following a two-car crash on the A11 in Thetford, Norfolk, on Sunday evening.
Officers were called to London Road at around 8.25pm after reports of a collision. Police believe the man, who was the driver of one of the vehicles, left the scene holding what was described as a handgun. Armed officers responded and shot him from “a short distance away”. Despite treatment from emergency services, he was pronounced dead at the scene.
The A11 has been shut in both directions between the Thetford Ranges roundabout and the Brandon Road roundabout, with diversions in place. Highways England said the road was expected to remain closed until mid-morning or early afternoon on Monday, with reopening anticipated between 2.30pm and 2.45pm.
Norfolk Police confirmed it had referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), which is standard procedure when someone is killed by police. The watchdog has launched an independent investigation and says it is still at an early stage.
An IOPC spokesperson said: "We were notified by the force after the incident on the A11, at Thetford, near the exit for London Road, at 9:39pm and declared an independent investigation a short time later. Despite the man receiving treatment for his injuries, he sadly died at the scene. We sent investigators to the post-incident procedure to begin our enquiries and start gathering evidence."
Assistant Chief Constable David Buckley said: "We understand this incident will cause concern in the community. Our highly trained armed officers deploy to hundreds of firearms related calls each year, but incidents where police discharge firearms are thankfully incredibly rare. A full and independent investigation is already underway. We are of course cooperating fully with the IOPC investigation and will be handing over all bodyworn footage and 999 calls to ensure transparency. We are not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident."
Images from the scene showed forensic officers examining the carriageway, while traffic remained at a standstill. Reporting from the area, BBC Norfolk described police vehicles blocking the road with cones set out around the closure. The shooting brings the total number of people shot dead by police in the UK to 88 since 1990, with 16 of those deaths occurring since 2020.
