Gunman shot by police as siege at house ends

A MAN was shot by police yesterday after a gun siege in which a wheelchair-bound man and a woman were taken hostage.

The man was shot after he opened fire with two shotguns. A police spokesman said later: 'The officers were returning fire.'

Earlier the gunman had terrorised Alan Lindfield, a multiple sclerosis sufferer, as he struggled to protect a woman home-help during the three-hour siege at Heathfield in East Sussex. Elizabeth Neville, assistant chief constable for Sussex, said: 'The man came out armed with two shotguns and after opening fire he was shot by police officers.'

The gunman was 'critical but stable' last night after undergoing emergency surgery.

Sussex Police have referred the shooting to the Police Complaints Authority, which will investigate the incident.