Olly Murs claim about gunfire during London terror scare dismissed by police

Singer said in a recent interview that he stood by a series of dramatic tweets sent during a terror scare in Oxford Circus last year

Police have dismissed pop singer Olly Murs' claims that there was a "cover-up" following reports of gunfire which sparked a terror scare in London during one of the busiest shopping days of the year.

Murs, 33, was criticised for posting a series of dramatic tweets from inside Selfridges on Oxford Street on 24 November, which claimed he heard gunshots.

"F**k everyone get out of Selfridges now, gun shots! I'm inside," he posted amid the panic.

Despite police confirming at the time that there was "no evidence of any shots fired", Murs insisted in an interview with The Sun this week that there was something "murky" about what happened.

"I ran into an office after being told by the staff of Selfridges that someone was there with a gun," he said. "Whether they were shooting into the air, or whatever, something happened that day - whether it was covered up, I don't know."

British Transport Police, who were first to respond to the incident, have since rubbished Murs' claims.

"This caused a significant level of panic which resulted in numerous calls from members of the public reporting gunfire," it said in a statement.

"A full methodical search of the station and Oxford Street was conducted by our specially trained firearms officers. During the search, officers did not find any evidence of gunfire at the station."

It is believed that the panic was sparked after a scuffle between two men on a nearby Oxford Circus Tube station caused a stampede that left 16 people injured.

Murs said in the interview that he continues to receive abuse for his reaction to the terror alert, saying: "I get mocked every day on Twitter. Someone always has a little dig. Well, next time you're in Selfridges and that happens to you, I'll message you and say 'How was that? How do you feel now? You're not Mr Brave now are you?"

Piers Morgan, who criticised Murs at the time of the incident, tweeted at him after the interview this week, writing: "Oh stick a cork in it @ollyofficial, for goodness sake... NOBODY. FIRED. A. GUN."