Armed police in standoff with man refusing to leave home with eight-year-old son

Residents trapped inside homes and school closed as street sealed off

Armed police are involved in a standoff with a man refusing to leave a house in Coventry with his eight-year-old son (Jacob King/PA)

Armed police are in a stand-off with a man who has been barricaded inside his home with his eight-year-old son for more than a day.

The 41-year-old has been refusing to leave a house in Coventry with his child since police were called to conduct a welfare check in the early hours of Sunday.

People have been stuck inside their homes for more than 30 hours and a primary school has been closed after police locked down Earlsdon Avenue North and sealed off surrounding streets.

Several officers, including armed police and other specially trained officers, remained at the scene on Monday “to bring the incident to a safe conclusion”.

West Midlands Police said in a statement: “A cordon remains in place around a house in Earlsdon Avenue North, Coventry, this morning where a man has been refusing to come out since the early hours of yesterday morning.

“The 41-year-old has his eight-year-old son with him and there are some concerns for their safety.

“Unfortunately, residents, businesses, a school and travel are severely disrupted by the cordon. We’re sorry for the inconvenience, but our priority is the safety of those involved.

“Please avoid the area where possible and we will issue updates on the situation as soon as we can.”

An information centre for residents affected by the closures has been set up in the nearby Earlsdon Community Library.

Earlsdon Avenue North is currently closed at the junctions with Kensington Road/Highland Road, Westwood Road and Newcombe Road, and at the roundabout with Albany Road.

Poplar Road is also closed at the junction with Newcombe Road.