A man holding a woman at an Italian restaurant as a hostage with a knife near Leicester Square in Central London was detained in a brief operation on Wednesday evening.
Advertisement
Riot police are dealing with the situation between Leicester Square and Charing Cross Road, with people “trapped” in restaurants nearby.
“It is reported a male, who has intimated he is in possession of a knife, is holding a woman against her will inside the venue”.
Again it should be stressed that all reports, including scanners picking up police radio chatter, suggest that it’s a man with a knife who once worked there, not a terrorist as others quickly reported.
The hostage-taker is a former employee at Bella Italia, where the incident began just before 9 p.m. local time, Sky News reported.
Ms Rosamund told Yahoo7 she and other restaurant goers are now “stuck downstairs”.
He said: ‘We were playing a gig and the police came around and said please stop singing. No one was allowed to exit the buildings they were now in.
‘There’s lots of police, big men in full gear with shields and helmets, ready to intervene.
Advertisement
Officers are now on the scene and attempting to engage with the man to resolve the situation.
