The gunman began shooting at the house in Markham Square at 17. 00 GMT. Then at 21.00 GMT and 21.30 GMT the man shot at the police, each time the police returned fire. At approximately 21.45 GMT four explosions were heard. These explosions were believed to be stun grenades. By 21.50 GMT the incident had been reported to the Independent Police Complaints Commission, this would indicated that the gunman had been killed by this time.
A Chelsea Shooting witness reported seeing green flashes at the same time as the explosions. This would seem to indicate that stun grenades were indeed used at the Kings Road Siege.
If early reports are correct the incident began when the unnamed man shot at a child’s bedroom at a house in Markham Square. The woman who owns the house in Chelsea said that she had no idea who he was, but could confirm that shotgun pellets were lodged in the ceiling and walls of her child’s bedroom. She also confirmed that three shots had hit the house.
“I have no idea who he was or why (he was shooting). I’m just grateful my kids weren’t in the house”. She said.
A spokesman for Scotland Yard confirmed that shots had been fired at the police in Chelsea and that the Chelsea shooting had been referred to the IPCC.
The Kings Road siege, as its being called, is just one of many gun related deaths in the capital this year. So who is going to stop the spiralling gun violence?
The London Mayor
Boris Johnson won the Mayoral Election on the anti crime ticket. Record numbers of voters turned out to vote, indicating that he had hit the right note. However, talking the talk is not the same as walking the walk. Boris Johnson has to be very careful, fail to deliver on his promises and the consequences could be dire for London. The BNP (a far right party) won a seat on the London Assembly, this after their success in the local elections. This would seem to indicate that ordinary Londoners are desperate for someone to make a difference. Unfortunately, this is leading to people like Richard Barnbrook (BNP) being voted into power.
London Mayor Boris Johnson has his work cut out if he is to halt the rise in gun and knife crime. If, he fails, the ominous shadow of the British National Party is lurking in the wings, ready to swoop in and prey on people’s fears. The trouble is, these fears are real and not without substance. So what is Boris Johnson, the new Mayor of London, going to do about rising crime?
In only his second official appearance since taking office, Mayor Johnson visited Dagenham. He was there to see and meet local young people involved in the London Fire Brigades ‘Local Intervention Fire Education’ scheme The LIFE project, as its called, teaches them practical fire fighting skills. Each youngster learns the value of; team work, personal responsibility, discipline, and self-respect.
Mayor Johnson seemed genuinely impressed by the young peoples attitude, he said: “We hear too much about gun and knife crime in our city, and programmes like LIFE give young people something positive to do”
As admirable as the LIFE scheme is Boris Johnson needs to get more police on the street if things like the Kings Road Shooting are to become a thing of the past. London Fire Brigades ‘Local Intervention Fire Education’ will have long-term benefits for our young people and society in general. However, projects like LIFE have to go hand in hand with, short-term, immediate action. This, to most Londoners, means police on our streets.
The new Mayor of London cannot be held responsible for the Kings Road Siege. However, if there are many more incidents like the Chelsea Shooting Boris will come under increasing pressure.
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Comments
That’s terrible news. Well, just wanted to drop by and see the blog was doing. Keep up the good work, and catch you later.
Simply a tragic story. My condolences go out to those families effected in the Chelsea Shooting.
Good luck with the contest. I hope we learn something new.
