A 23-Year-old man is in custody this morning following a late night stand off with police in Haverhill.

A 23-Year-old man is in custody this morning following a late night stand off with police in Haverhill.

Homeowners looked on as a man skipped from roof to roof along Primrose Hill, punching and kicking his way through two loft spaces, throwing roof tiles, and causing damage as he went.

Officers were called to a minimarket, where a neighbour had reported seeing a man entering a flat above the shop, at around 11pm last night.

As police arrived the man kicked out a second floor window from inside the property and began threatening officers with a shard of broken glass.

Trained negotiators were called in and the Essex Police helicopter was mobilised as the man climbed on top of the roof.

At 11.26pm police reported the man sitting on the apex of two roofs, throwing tiles down to the street below.

Shortly afterwards he made a hole in the roof of one of the houses and moved along the loft space of another three properties, appearing again at around 11.35pm.

The man's right hand was blood soaked as he attempted to climb a chimney breast in order to stay warm.

Anticipating the man's next move, officers took up position in a loft nine houses away from where the man started.

At 12.30am after scrambling inside and on top of 15 roofs, police took hold of the man's hand and brought him down to street level.

Paramedics, who were waiting on standby in an adjoining street, found that the man was uninjured despite concerns he may have been suffering from hypothermia.

A knife was recovered from one of the houses and a 23-year-old from Haverhill was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage and aggravated burglary and taken to Bury St Edmunds Police Station.