Man waving knife around on busy street disarmed by police

The officer in the Greater Manchester Police Leigh, Atherton and Hindley branch took to social media to share the great work done by his fellow officers.

The incident unfolded on Monday morning when the police officers were called to reports of a man with a knife walking along Leigh Road towards Atherton.

Several reports came through from concerned residents and the officers on duty responded as well as other patrols and including officers armed with tasers to immobilise the suspect.

The post said: “PCs Taylor and Taylor, who were on Leigh Road, spotted the male and, yes, he did have a knife in his hand.

“He was waving it about and was a danger to others.

“They have gone towards him in the van and, using good tactical communications while staying safe, they have managed to get him to drop the knife and get in a position where they could deal with him safely and protect other members of the public, as this was near a busy location on a main road. All officers were unharmed.”

The man has since been arrested.

The officer added: “The officers dealt with this professionally and with one purpose - to stop anyone from being hurt, they ran/drove towards the danger without hesitation and now a male is in custody safely and no one was hurt.

“After the events over the past couple of weeks, where colleagues have been seriously injured and killed and the thin blue line became thinner, I’m glad that these two officers are safe.”

Knife crime reached a record level last year in England and Wales, while there was the highest number of homicides for more than a decade, official figures show.

Police recorded 40,829 offences involving knives or sharp objects in 2018, an increase of six per cent in a year and the largest total since comparable data began in 2011.