[image alt="Britain London Incident" src="http://cdn.thejournal.ie/media/2017/11/britain-london-incident-3-296x202.jpg" width="296" height="202" credit-source="Alastair%20Grant" credit-via="PA%20Images" caption="Police%20officers%20and%20vehicles%20near%20Oxford%20Circus%20subway%20station%20as%20it%20was%20shut%20down%20%20" class="alignnone" /end]
TWO MEN HAVE handed themselves into police following an altercation that led to the closure of two Tube stations and mass panic in central London last night.
The men, aged 21 and 40, attended a police station this morning following an appeal.
They were interviewed by detectives and the inquiry is still ongoing.
Sixteen people were treated for injuries after reports that shots had been fired, sparking fear of a terror incident.
After locking down the area for more than an hour, the Metropolitan Police said officers had not found “any trace of any suspects, evidence of shots fired or casualties”.
In a statement released last night, British Transport Police said it believes the panic unfolded after “an altercation between two men on the platform” at Oxford Circus station.
They released CCTV images of the two men and appealed for them or anyone who has information about the incident to come forward.
[image alt="original" src="http://cdn.thejournal.ie/media/2017/11/original-286.jpg" width="261" height="209" credit-source="BTP" caption="The%20two%20men%20police%20wanted%20to%20speak%20to%0A" class="alignnone" /end]
“I know incidents like these can cause concern, but our officers are highly visible around the network and across the country,” Fry said, asking anyone with information to call 0800 40 50 40.
Nine people taken to hospital
Speaking about those who were injured, Stuart Crichton, Assistant Director of Operations at London Ambulance Service, said: “We were called at 4.44pm to reports of an incident at Oxford Circus.
“We sent a number of resources to the scene including an incident response officer, three specialist responders, and a number of ambulance crews and medics. We worked closely with other members of the emergency services at the scene.”
Several people who sustained injuries while leaving the Oxford Circus area were treated at the scene, while eight patients were taken to two central London hospitals for minor injuries. Another patient was transferred to a major trauma centre due to leg injuries.
False reports
The incident showed that incorrect information can spread in already panicked situations.
The Mail Online, one of the most visited sites in the world, reported an eyewitness account from Twitter user Dan Smallbone. Smallbone tweeted about a lorry stopped on Oxford Street with “police all around it and blood on the floor”.
The story was shared over 1,000 times and tweeted out by the site, the online arm of the Daily Mail. However, Dan Smallbone’s tweet was posted on 14 November – ten days ago.
The Mail subsequently deleted the copy and tweets. No clarification has been posted on the site’s current story.
Singer and TV presenter Olly Murs has also found himself at the centre of a row with Piers Morgan after his tweets from the scene.
https://twitter.com/ollyofficial/status/934104483537326080
Murs tweeted that there had been gunshots, something that police said they found no evidence of. However Murs, like many people, tweeted that shots had been fired.
The store was evacuated as a precaution. Murs later tweeted that there had been no shots and he was safe. He then clarified that the situation was confusing for shoppers.
With reporting by Paul Hosford and Orla Ryan.
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