Published Date: 16.11.2011

Investigators from the Office were alerted to an incident in the early hours of Sunday morning (13 November) in which police pointed a handgun and two Tasers at a man.

The man, who had locked himself inside a room in a hostel in Belfast, was armed with knives and was threatening to kill himself. Entry was gained to the room and the officers 'red dotted' the man while demanding he dropped the weapons. He responded to the commands and no injuries were sustained either by the police or the man.

The Police Ombudsman's Office, alerted to the incident because of the fact that weapons were drawn, looked at the actions of the police to assess the appropriateness of their response. Based on an initial assessment, the deployment of the less lethal option in this case indicates that the response was reasonable and proportionate. In addition, no public complaint has been made.