Hertfordshire, England police arrest armed suspect after stand-off

A man claiming to have attached a bomb to his body has been arrested after a stand-off with police officers in a town in Hertfordshire, England. Police were notified of the incident at the Co-operative Bank on Market Street, Watford at approximately 1020 BST (0920 UTC) Thursday.

A number of armed officers attended. Noises resembling bangs were heard at approximately 1320 BST (1220 UTC); the male suspect was placed under arrest at about 1345 BST (1245 UTC), just over three hours after the incident began. According to a spokeswoman for the police, "[a]n explosive device of some kind - as yet we don't know what this is - has been removed from this individual." Much of the town centre was sealed off during this incident.

According to a statement from Hertfordshire Constabulary: "Safety of members of the public was paramount and a cordon was put in place and people were evacuated from nearby premises. There will be police activity in the town centre for a while to come. Understandably this caused concern within the community and we would like to thank members of the public for their co-operation in this matter."

The spokeswoman has reported that the alleged criminal "has been arrested and will be taken to police custody for interview" and that "[i]nvestigations into the nature of this device will continue".