Brixton: Man tasered after threatening passengers with 'unknown substance' on London bus

A man was tasered after allegedly threatening bus passengers with an unknown substance in London. Metropolitan police said they were called to London Road, Thornton Heath shortly after 8.30pm on Sunday (February 11), to an incident on a bus, where a man had made threats but no hostages were taken.

According to an eyewitness, the man boarded the 109 bus in Brixton and started smoking, before he took out a bottle, reportedly containing a "substance." The man, aged 44, was later arrested for affray.

Amber Nurse, 38, an admin clerk, watched the incident unfold outside her home. She was in bed when her son woke her up after spotting the commotion outside their window.

She said: "I got up and walked to the window. There was a big queue of traffic behind the bus. The police were there and then I saw the armed police too looking around. That's when I thought 'this is quite serious'. At first they were just waiting and I guess observing the guy.

"They had a guy come up into the block of flats to look at him from his level, because he was in the top deck. The guys in the blue suits were there. There was a negotiator trying to get him downstairs. Then they went up. They approached him and finally tasered him."

A Met spokesperson said: "A man has been arrested by Met officers responding to an incident on a bus. The man had made threats but no hostages were taken. Police were called to London Road, Thornton Heath shortly after 20:30hrs on Sunday, 11 February, to a man threatening bus passengers with an unknown substance.

"Nobody was held hostage. The man made threats and everyone else on the bus immediately got off. The substance was not thrown. Shortly before midnight, the 44-year-old man was arrested for affray. The substance was found not to be harmful.

"Taser was discharged prior to his arrest and officers believe the man had taken drugs. As a precaution, he was taken to hospital. His condition is not believed to be life-threatening."