A man who was rescued from the Thames after being Tasered by police is in a critical condition.

Officers were called at 9am on Saturday to a report of a disturbance on Chelsea Bridge Road in London where the man, believed to be in his 40s and reportedly armed with a screwdriver, was shouting.

He was challenged by police on the bridge and was Tasered but the force said this “did not enable the officers to safely detain him”.

Met Police said the man “subsequently entered the river”, after which the RNLI rescued him and he was taken to hospital.

The Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards will investigate while the police watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), has had the case referred to them.

Detective Chief Inspector Rory Wilkinson of the Met’s Central West BCU said: “My thoughts are with this man, who is extremely unwell in hospital. Officers are making every effort to make contact with his family.

“I understand that there are always concerns about incidents in which people come to harm having been in contact with police.

“All Met officers know that they are accountable for their actions, and a full investigation is under way to establish exactly what happened.”

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