Man shot dead by firearms officers at Kensington Palace

A man has died after sustaining gunshot wounds in an incident involving armed officers close to Kensington Palace.

The Metropolitan Police said officers were called to reports of a man with a firearm seen to enter a bank and bookmakers in Marloes Road, west London, at 3.04pm on Saturday.

The force said the man was then seen to get into a vehicle and leave the area.

At 3.19pm, armed officers stopped a vehicle at the junction of Kensington Road and Palace Gate next to Kensington Gardens.

The Met said: “Shots were fired and a man sustained gunshot wounds.

“The London Ambulance Service and London Air Ambulance were called and the man was treated at the scene.”

Police said despite the best efforts of the emergency services, he was pronounced dead at 4.08pm.

Efforts are under way to confirm the man’s identity and to inform his next of kin.

The Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards has been informed and the incident has been referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

A number of road closures are in place in the area and are likely to remain for some time, with police advising the public to avoid the area.

The incident is not being treated as terrorism.

A number of police cordons have been put in place along Kensington High Street, and police officers are keeping guard at the largest cordon between a Starbucks and a building named Broadwalk House.

Around ten police vehicles are in place around the cordon.

A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said crews were called at 3.23pm to reports of a shooting.

“We sent an ambulance, an incident response officer, a tactical response unit, a motorcycle response unit and an advanced paramedic. The London Air Ambulance car also responded,” they said.

“We treated a man on scene, who unfortunately died.”

The IOPC confirmed it has begun an investigation following the incident.

“After being notified of the incident by the MPS, we sent investigators to the scene and the post-incident procedure to start gathering evidence,” a spokesperson said.