A man shot dead after ‘acting suspiciously’ on the South Bank has been named as Hassan Yahya.
Early investigations by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) suggest Mr Yahya aroused concern in the vicinity of the Royal Festival Hall at around 11.25pm last Sunday.
A member of the public reported their fears to two Ministry of Defence police officers on patrol who tried to stop him.
Mr Yahya had two knives on him, police have claimed. Two knives were recovered from the scene of the shooting in Westminster’s Nothumberland Avenue, independent investigators have also said.
The IOPC currently believes that the 30-year-old came by his death after running over Hungerford Bridge into Westminster and then being shot dead by City of London Police.
They had been responding to an emergency call in an armed response vehicle. The incident has not been treated as terror-related.
Tasers were fired multiple times during the incident.
“My thoughts remain with Mr Yahya’s family and all those affected by this loss,” said Sal Naseem of the IOPC, which is legally required to investigate fatal police shootings.
“It’s important we establish exactly what happened. We’ve already gathered a substantial amount of evidence – including CCTV and officers’ body worn video – which will be carefully analysed by our investigators.”
A coroner has been informed of Mr Yahya’s death, and a post-mortem has been carried out. An inquest will be scheduled in due course.
His next-of-kin are aware and no other members of the public were harmed during the shooting.