Supermarket evacuated in Raunds after 'knifeman' spotted by shoppers

Armed police were called to Asda in Raunds last night (Thursday, November 19) following an incident in Asda in Michael Way, Raunds.

At about 9.10pm, Northamptonshire Police’s Control Room received a number of calls from members of the public reporting that a man was inside the supermarket holding a knife.

When armed officers arrived at the scene shortly afterward, the man was safely detained and swiftly arrested on suspicion of possessing an offensive weapon in a public place. He remains in police custody this morning.

No one was injured during the incident.

East Northants Neighbourhood Policing Sergeant, Leigh Françoise Goodwin, said: “This was a terrifying experience for the staff at Asda and firstly, I would like to pay tribute to them for the way they ensured their customers were evacuated and kept safe throughout the incident.

“An incident of this nature is exceptionally rare, however I hope the level of response we provided, including our ability to quickly deploy specially trained firearms officers, reassures the community that we are always ready and equipped to react to a variety of scenarios in order to keep the public safe.

“Finally, I would appeal to anyone who witnessed this incident but has not yet come forward to contact us so we can take a statement.

“Neighbourhood officers will be patrolling the area today to provide a reassuring presence for the staff and local community in Raunds.”

On social media this morning, Northants Police said: "As you can imagine, this must have been a terrifying experience for the staff and the members of the public inside the store at the time.

Our call handlers @NorthantsFCR took the calls as they always do in the face of panic - calmly, reassuringly, measured, & always with that hope in the back of their heads for a good outcome

"Firearms officers were deployed to the scene quickly, safely detained the man and swiftly arrested him on suspicion of possessing an offensive weapon in a public place. He remains in police custody at this time

First of all, shout out to the staff @asda who ensured their customers were evacuated & kept safe throughout the incident. Secondly, we want to pay tribute to our officers, from the call handlers in the FCR to the armed officers on the ground, for an excellent response

"An incident of this nature is very rare but we hope the level of response provided, including the deployment of specially trained firearms officers, reassures the public that we are always ready & equipped to react to a variety of scenarios in order to keep them safe.

Anyone who witnessed the incident can call 101 or you or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111 quoting incident number: 20000613837.