A man believed to be aged 25 has been found dead outside a pub in Clapham, London, following reports of gunshots. The incident occurred near the junction of Willington Road and Landor Road, outside the Landor Pub, on Monday night.
Specialist forensics teams are scouring the scene for evidence, and police have visited nearby homes with Ring doorbells as part of their investigation.
Residents describe hearing multiple bangs
Locals reported hearing multiple loud bangs from outside the pub at around 10pm. One resident said: "It was shortly after 10pm and I heard lots of sirens, and I heard bangs - I think it was five or something. And then I said 'do you think they were gunshots?'"
Another shaken resident expressed fear for her two-year-old grandson growing up in the city, saying: "It's sad what happened, that someone lost a life."
A nearby resident described the moment: "I was walking up Landor Road to the shop, I heard two loud bangs coming from Willington Road. The couple in front of me looked a bit startled and he held her back. I thought, 'It's fine you hear stuff in London all the time.' I walked around them and I looked up Willington Road and there's a man running away and he's shouted something twice, but I don't know what. He ran around the corner [towards Clapham North] and I saw the victim lying on the floor looking up and then everyone realised what happened and I ran off, people ran into the shop. I was shaken. I didn't see the gunfire but I was right next to it. It's a nice area with nice people, there's a few dodgy people around sometimes but I've never seen something like this happen before. This kind of thing happens in London quite a bit, but to be this close shakes you up quite a bit."
Community leader speaks out
Pastor Lorraine, a London-based anti-knife crime activist, said: "The scenes of body tents, blood and forensic evidence in our communities are horrifying and deeply traumatising. In our inner-city communities, where residents and families live so closely together, the impact of such violence reaches far beyond the immediate crime scene. It is the school summer holidays, and many children who have not travelled away will be waking up and looking out of their windows to this horrific scene. No child should have to witness this. It is heartbreaking. My thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends who are grieving, traumatised and in complete shock right now. Another family has been plunged into unimaginable pain, and another community has been left trying to process the devastation."
The Metropolitan Police and London Ambulance Service have been contacted for comment.
