ARMED POLICE DETAIN MAN ON BUS IN NEWPORT AMID FIREARM FEARS

Reports of a man in possession of a gun led to the deployment of Armed Police in Newport last night (Saturday). It was sometime around 19:30 that Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary was made aware of fears that a male was walking around the county town armed with a firearm. Armed Response Officers from the mainland were quickly whisked across the Solent to Cowes, joining up with local Armed Police to locate and detain their suspect. It didn’t take long for enquiries to lead officers to Newport Bus Station and then to a Route 1 bus that had just departed. Armed Police stopped a double decker on St James’ Street, near the junction with Crocker Street, and detained a male found onboard. It has been confirmed that no firearm was located. By 23:00 the incident had been stood down and mainland officers were taken back to Cowes to return to Southampton.