A man has been shot by police during a planned operation.

A witness said he saw two men trying to rob a van outside a Sainsbury’s in Wimbledon, south-west London, when officers “swarmed out of the bushes”.

The Met Police said the man was taken to hospital after the shooting in Lacock Close at about 08:10 GMT. The force said it was waiting for an update on his condition. A second man has been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to rob.

The witness, who did not want to be named, said he saw two men raiding the van before armed police “bounded on them”. “Seven shots were fired. The cops were waiting for them,” he added.

The witness said one of the men then ran up the street holding a gun and “when he saw he was turning into a cul-de-sac he turned and fired on the cops, then they returned fire”.
London Ambulance Service said paramedics “treated a person at the scene and took them as a priority to a major trauma centre”.

A Sainsbury’s spokesperson said that an “incident took place outside our Haydons Road Local” and they were “supporting the police with their investigation”.

The operation involved officers from the force’s Flying Squad who were supported by armed colleagues, the Met confirmed.

Haydon’s Road has been cordoned off by police between Quicks Road and South Park Road, and North Road is also shut while investigations take place. The Independent Office for Police Conduct has launched an independent investigation into the shooting.

A spokesperson said the Met had “referred itself to us, as is normal for all incidents involving police shootings and we have sent our investigators to the scene”. The Met’s internal Directorate of Professional Standards has also been informed.

The Flying Squad is a branch of the Met’s Serious and Organised Crime Command who investigate armed robberies with detectives trained in firearms and covert surveillance roles. Some of their most famous investigations include The Great Train Robbery and the Brinks-Mat security depot robbery.