Dina Rickman is an assistant editor at The Huffington Post UK
|
A man has been arrested after a three-hour siege which led to one of the busiest roads in central London being closed off.
Police said: "We have made an arrest. A man has been arrested and a search of the buildings is underway. The cordon around the area will be removed in due course. There are no indications of hostages involved."
Police evacuated office buildings and sent a negotiator to Tottenham Court Road, central London, after a man, reported to be wearing gas canisters, stormed into an office and threatened to blow himself up. He was reported to be 50-year-old Michael Green.
Open Image Modal
A shirtless man, believed to be Michael Green, is led away from the scene by police
The Met police's Mak Chishty told journalists police were concerned he had "explosive materials": "We were called at midday to reports of a man causing a disturbance on Tottenham Court Road. He was located on the fifth floor at the building on number 179. Items were thrown from the window onto the street below. We were concerned that he may have explosive materials or flammable liquids with him.
"Our immediate concern was for the safety of the people inside the building and for the general population in the vicinity. Specialists metropolitan police negotiators were brought to the scene with colleagues from the London Ambulance Service, the London Fire Brigade and specialist firearms officers. During the course of the incident a number of people who were inside the building left the vicinity.
Scroll down for more pics
"After contact with our specialist police negotiators the man came out of the building and was arrested at 3pm this afternoon. He is now in police custody. We are currently searching the premises to ensure that they are safe and will begin the process of returning the area to normality as soon as possible."
Asked about what police said to the man he said he would not go into detail. "It was a local man, the matter was quite local."
Abby Baafi, 27, the head of training and operations at Advantage, a company which offers HGV courses, said the man had targeted her offices and had held four men hostage. She told The Huffington Post UK: "He just turned up, strapped up in gasoline, gasoline cylinders. Basically he threatened to blow up the offices. Says he doesn't care about his life, doesn't care about anything."
"He was specifically looking for me but I said 'My name's not Abby' and he let me go."
Baafi said the man had failed the HGV training course and wanted his money back.
Masked police personnel leave Tottenham Court Road in central London on April 27, 2012, after a man was arrested after causing a disturbance in an office building in central London. Police arrested a man who witnesses said had threatened to blow himself up in an office building in central London, forcing a busy shopping street to be sealed off in a three-hour standoff on Friday. AFP PHOTO / MIGUEL MEDINA (Photo credit should read MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP/GettyImages) (credit:Getty)
Armed Police Tackle Hostage Situation In Central London(02 of07)
Open Image Modal
LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 27: An armed police officer in Tottenham Court Road prepares himself during a suspected hostage situation on April 27, 2012 in London, England. The busy shopping street in central London was evacuated after a 50-year-old man, named as Michael Green, arrived in the offices of Advantage HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) 'strapped up with gasoline cylinders, and threatened to blow up the office'. According to reports the man, who began to throw computers and other office equipment from the office window, failed a HGV training course and demanded his money back. The siege ended following the arrest of the man and no harm to any hostages. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
Members of the public gather on Tottenha(03 of07)
Open Image Modal
Members of the public gather on Tottenham Court Road in central London on April 27, 2012, as police seal off the street amid reports of an armed man causing a disturbance. At least a dozen emergency vehicles with lights flashing could be seen blocking off Tottenham Court Road in London, AFP reporters said. AFP PHOTO / DANIEL SORABJI (Photo credit should read MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP/GettyImages) (credit:Getty)
Armed Police Tackle Hostage Situation In Central London(04 of07)
Open Image Modal
LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 27: Armed police officer on the scene where a man threaten to blow himself up in an office building on Tottenham Court Road on April 27, 2012 in London, England. The busy shopping street in central London was evacuated after a 50-year-old man, named as Michael Green, arrived in the offices of Advantage HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) 'strapped up with gasoline cylinders, and threatened to blow up the office'. According to reports the man, who began to throw computers and other office equipment from the office window, failed a HGV training course and demanded his money back. The siege ended following the arrest of the man and no harm to any hostages. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
Armed Police Tackle Hostage Situation In Central London(05 of07)
Open Image Modal
LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 27: A man throws a computer monitor from an upper floor window during a hostage situation on Tottenham Court Road on April 27, 2012 in London, England. The busy shopping street in central London was evacuated after a 50-year-old man, named as Michael Green, arrived in the offices of Advantage HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) 'strapped up with gasoline cylinders, and threatened to blow up the office'. According to reports the man, who began to throw computers and other office equipment from the office window, failed a HGV training course and demanded his money back. The siege ended following the arrest of the man and no harm to any hostages. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
Armed Police Tackle Hostage Situation In Central London(06 of07)
Open Image Modal
LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 27: Armed police officers on the scene where a man threaten to blow himself up in an office building on Tottenham Court Road on April 27, 2012 in London, England. The busy shopping street in central London was evacuated after a 50-year-old man, named as Michael Green, arrived in the offices of Advantage HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) 'strapped up with gasoline cylinders, and threatened to blow up the office'. According to reports the man, who began to throw computers and other office equipment from the office window, failed a HGV training course and demanded his money back. The siege ended following the arrest of the man and no harm to any hostages. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
Armed Police Tackle Hostage Situation In Central London(07 of07)
Open Image Modal
LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 27: Armed police officers on the scene where a man threaten to blow himself up in an office building on Tottenham Court Road on April 27, 2012 in London, England. The busy shopping street in central London has been evacuated after an unidentified 49-year-old man arrived in the offices of Advantage HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) 'strapped up with gasoline cylinders, and threatened to blow up the office'. According to reports the man, who began to throw computers and other office equipment from the office window, failed a HGV training course and demanded his money back. The siege has recently ended following the arrest of the man. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)