Armed police arrest shop attack man

A 24-year-old man from Newmarket was arrested today after a vicious attack on a shop owner led to a four-hour armed siege involving two police forces and the Suffolk police helicopter.

By James Fraser

A 24-year-old man from Newmarket has been arrested after a vicious attack on a shop owner led to a four-hour armed siege involving two police forces and the Suffolk police helicopter.

Police surrounded an address in the Stanley Road area of Newmarket yesterday after a man wearing a stocking over his head entered a corner shop on Stanley Road, produced a handgun and struck the owner about the head at around 5.45pm.

The shopkeeper needed stitches for a cut to his face and was later released from West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds.

Witnesses to the attack led to a joint police operation by officers from Suffolk and Cambridgeshire as they closed in on the attacker who had taken refuge at a house just the other side of the Cambridgeshire border.

During a four-hour stand off, Suffolk's police helicopter kept a close eye on the address to make sure no one tried to escape from the building.

When armed reinforcements arrived at 9.45pm, a man gave himself up to police. The man, who is said to be local, is currently being held at Bury St Edmunds police station.

Any witnesses to the incident or to the immediate aftermath, particularly anyone that saw a small, grey car leave the scene should contact Suffolk police on 01473 613500.