Shot man's tie to bombing suspects unclear

An Asian man shot dead by police as he tried to board a London Underground train turned out not to be one of the four men suspected of the attempted attacks in the capital.

Armed police pursued the man in Stockwell, south London, as part of an undercover operation. He ran off when challenged, and they shot him five times in the head on the floor of an Underground train, fearing he was about to detonate a bomb.

The man, whose identity had not been released late last night, was thought to be linked to the failed bombers.

However, the extent of his connections with the alleged bombers is unclear and his death has renewed controversy about killings by police firearms officers.

Although witnesses said the man was wearing a bulky coat "with wires sticking out of it", there was no indication last night that he had been carrying a bomb.

By late last night, the police had arrested two men in connection with the bombings, as a massive manhunt began. Both were arrested in Stockwell and one is believed to be the Shoreditch bus bomber.

The disclosure came as Scotland Yard released closed-circuit television photographs of the four suspects, taken at the three Underground stations and on a bus where the bombing attempts were made.

The developments came as part of an extensive and fast-moving police inquiry being conducted as Londoners attempted to return to work amid widespread public fear of a further attack.

- INDEPENDENT