By James HoreA PENSIONER died last night of gunshot wounds after a dramatic armed siege ended in tragedy.A police investigation was under way after the body of an elderly man was discovered more than three hours after the siege began in Stowmarket.
By James Hore
A PENSIONER died last night of gunshot wounds after a dramatic armed siege ended in tragedy.
A police investigation was under way after the body of an elderly man was discovered more than three hours after the siege began in Stowmarket.
Roads on a housing estate in the town remained closed off last night as detectives and scenes of crimes officers began the painstaking task of piecing together the events leading to the pensioner's death.
Armed police were called to a house in Thackeray Grove, Stowmarket, at about 5pm yesterday after neighbours called the force, reporting that an elderly man was threatening to harm himself.
The cul-de-sac off Chilton Way was cordoned off and residents told to stay in their homes as trained negotiators tried to make contact with the man, who was believed to be 70 years old and armed with a shotgun.
Residents watched as an ambulance and police dog unit were also drafted in before officers eventually went into the house at about 8.30pm, where they discovered the man's body on the floor.
A post-mortem examination has yet to be carried out, but Suffolk police said last night that it appeared the man had died as a result of a gunshot wound and added the death was not being treated as suspicious.
Police have yet to name the dead man, who is thought to have been living alone, and were trying last night to contact members of his family.
The area remained sealed off as scenes of crime officers and detectives worked to establish exactly what happened before and during the siege.
A Suffolk police spokesman said the man was already dead when the officers went into the house.
He added: “The body is believed to be that of a 70-year-old man. Although a post-mortem has not been conducted, it is believed that the man died as a result of a gunshot wound. Police are not treating the death as suspicious.”
The spokesman said the man's identity would not be released until next of kin had been told of his death.
It is expected the coroner will hold an inquest into the man's death at a date yet to be fixed.
james.hore@eadt.co.uk
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