Plymouth shooting: What we know so far

Six people, including a child, died during the shooting in Plymouth on Thursday evening.

Police declared a “critical incident” as multiple emergency services were scrambled to the Keyham area of the city.

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Officers were called to Biddick Drive just after 6pm where they found two males and two females – along with the suspected gunman – dead at the scene.

Another female treated at the scene later died in hospital. All are thought to have died from gunshot wounds.

And as yet unconfirmed number of people are being treated for their injuries in hospital.

Devon and Cornwall Police said the incident is not terror-related and it was not looking for anyone else in connection with the shooting.

All next of kin of the deceased have been located and informed, the force added.

The suspected gunman, who is thought to have shot himself, has been named as 23-year-old Jake Davison.

What has been said about events so far?

Local MP Luke Pollard told Sky’s Kay Burley that police are still trying to “piece together the timeline of events” but he is hoping they will provide an update shortly.

While details of exactly what happened are scarce, Mr Pollard said it’s thought the shooting began in Biddick Drive after 6pm and spread to nearby streets.

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The MP confirmed that the scene is “spread out over a wider area in the community”.

“The police cordon is over quite a substantial part of the community and we will need to find out more from the police later today,” he told Times Radio.

Police said in a statement that two males and two females were found dead on the scene, as was the suspected shooter.

A third female was treated for gunshot wounds at the scene but died a short time later in hospital.

South Western Ambulance Service said Hazardous Area Response Teams, multiple ambulances, air ambulances, multiple doctors and senior paramedics were sent to the scene.

Mr Pollard said on Twitter that one of the victims was a child under 10 years old, saying he was “utterly devastated” to share the news.

The MP added that more people were being treated for their injuries in hospital.

He told Times Radio that he was still waiting for final figures from the police on the number of people injured and added: “I’m afraid there’s an awful lot of people who seem to be caught up in this shooting.

“We are waiting for final figures from the police on how many people are injured.”

“This is utterly grim news we are waking up to today, the entire community is devastated at the brutality of this attack,” Mr Pollard added.

“Keyham is a really tight-knit community – it is the type of place you know your neighbour and look out for one another.”

Update: police have confirmed that six people have died in the shooting in #keyham in #plymouth. More people are being treated for their injuries in hospital. Just so unspeakably awful. My condolences and thoughts are with the families.

Unconfirmed reports from witnesses said the gunman opened fire in a house before coming out on to the street and shooting at people as he ran – including two dog walkers in a nearby park.

Video posted on Twitter showed a man partially covered in a blanket with blood staining the pavement. Two police officers, one armed, could be seen standing over the body.

What have witnesses said?

Sharron Turner, 57, who lives behind the scene of the shooting, told the Times that a gunman had “kicked in” the front door of a semi-detached house before shooting a young mother and her daughter, who was aged about five.

Ms Turner said she had been told that the man was armed with a semi-automatic weapon.

The gunman escaped through a park behind the house after the attack and shot two dog walkers, she added.

“We heard a number of loud bangs which I said sounded like gunshots. Then he ran into the park and there were further shots,” she said.

Robert Pinkerton, 54, told Plymouth Live that he was on Henderson Place, near Biddick Drive, when he heard a loud bang.

Mr Pinkerton said he then turned a corner and bumped into a man but “swerved” when he saw the gun.

He said he also saw an injured woman in the doorway of a hairdresser’s and witnessed a man trying to give her medical attention.

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Meanwhile, local resident Michelle Abdullah wrote on social media: “Police right outside my house. Three air ambulances at the park out my back garden.”

A second witness, with the Facebook name “Hair N Nails” wrote: “I’ve just had to emergency drive out of my house. There’s [someone] on the rampage in my cul de sac with a real gun and he’s already shot two people.

“They are laying on the ground. One is dead, blood everywhere. I’m shaking like a leaf.”

One witness told MailOnline: “I was at my mate’s house after going to the gym. We were in his kitchen making some sandwiches and suddenly we heard shouting followed by screaming.

“We really thought nothing of it as the area can be noisy sometimes. We soon after heard what we thought was a firework going off so then walked towards the front of the house.

“We then saw the body of the gunman and called 999.”

Another resident, named only as John, told the newspaper: “I heard the air ambulance helicopters, and two of them landed in the playing field behind us.

“Then we could hear police cars screeching and we saw armed response officers running up the hill, carrying guns. And loads of ambulances arrived.

“I went out to check that people were all right and to ask if there was anything we could do, and the Police Community Support Officers told everyone to get back indoors.

“Then we saw the ambulances take people away. It all seemed to be happening at the man’s family home, I think. People are saying that the man has killed himself. He’s only a young guy, late teens or early 20s.”

What’s been the reaction?

Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted: “My thoughts are with the friends and family of those who lost their lives and with all those affected by the tragic incident in Plymouth last night.

“I thank the emergency services for their response.”

My thoughts are with the friends and family of those who lost their lives and with all those affected by the tragic incident in Plymouth last night. I thank the emergency services for their response.

Home Secretary Priti Patel last night urged everyone to “remain calm” following the incident, saying police should be allowed to get on with their jobs.

She called the shootings “shocking” and offered her thoughts to those affected.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer echoed her remarks, tweeting: “There’s much we don’t know about the shocking events in Plymouth. However it’s clear tragedy has hit Keyham.

“My thoughts are with the families and neighbours of those caught up in this nightmare. I pay tribute to our emergency services who ran towards events we’d all run from.”

Shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds described it as “truly terrible” news, and said he was thinking of the families and friends of those who have died and been injured.

He added: “Thank you to our remarkable emergency services. I’ve been in contact with local representatives to express my support for the whole community of Plymouth on this awful evening.”

The leader of Plymouth City Council said nothing in his “living memory” compares with what happened on Thursday night.

Nick Kelly told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme he will wait for police to give further details, but added: “What we do know though is, tragically, six people have lost their lives.

“Although we are a major city, we just don’t have crime, and certainly, nothing like this in my living memory has ever happened in our city.”

He added that the city is “waking up to the reality that we have got six people who have tragically lost their lives last night”.

Mr Kelly also said the council will support people who may have witnessed the shooting and its aftermath.

“Anybody witnessing that, we want to give the relevant support now and in the near future because, as I say, this just does not happen, thankfully, in our country but certainly not in Plymouth, so we are deeply shocked, upset, and we are in a state of mourning in Plymouth.”

Plymouth Argyle FC tweeted: “Our hearts go out to victims of tonight’s tragic incident in our city, alongside their families, friends, and the wider Plymouth community.”

The Bishop of Plymouth, the Rt Rev Mark O’Toole, said there is a “deep sense of shock and sadness” in the city following the shooting.

He said: “I offer my support and prayers for all those who were killed, and for their loved ones at this tragic time.

“Let us pray in our churches this weekend for all those affected and for the people of Plymouth.”

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