Police in Britain last night arrested one escaped prisoner and were searching for an armed group and another prisoner after a dramatic shooting incident at Slough Magistrates' court in Berkshire.
The 22-year old escaped prisoner, believed to be Mr Ricky Loveridge, was arrested by police after he and Mr Richard Hurley (19) escaped from the court.
Two armed men, wearing balaclavas and fluorescent jackets similar to those worn by traffic police, charged into the courtroom at 12.40 p.m. and several shots were fired into the air. The shooting caused a diversion that enabled the two defendants to escape from the court building into a waiting four-wheel drive Subaru Impreza car, which was driven off by another man.
Mr Loveridge, a local man, was on remand at Bullingdon prison, accused on conspiracy to burgle and Mr Hurley, of Feltham, west London, was on remand at Reading prison charged with burglary.
A relative of Mr Loveridge, who refused to be identified but is believed to be one of his uncles, urged his nephew to surrender to the police. "It's upsetting, obviously, and I wish he would come back and give himself up," he told reporters. "I think he will because he was just probably pumped up from the situation. He's not really that way inclined. At a guess, I would say he's been pulled along in the heat of the moment; it's just not in his character."
One of the armed men hit a policeman on the head with the butt of his gun during a struggle outside the courtroom, but the policeman was later released from hospital after being treated for cuts.
Mr Richard Wareham was in the court during the incident and he said he took refuge in a corner when the shots were fired. "I had heard the gunfire go off; there was shouting and then two prisoners ran out, followed by the others," Mr Wareham said. "It was all over in a matter of seconds; they ran out of the double doors like they really wanted to get away. I was in such a state of shock because of the guns I didn't pay any attention to the direction they headed in."
He said there was total panic for other defendants and their relatives waiting outside court number one. Ms Rosetta Duva (22), who works in a cafe near the court, said the father of the third defendant, who was not taken from court, visited the cafe after the incident.
"He said his son was in the dock, but lay down on the floor when the men came in," she said. Ms Duva said the father was very shaken and could not believe what had happened.
The legal team manager at the court, Ms Katharine Marshall, said more people could have been hurt if the incident had happened during working hours, but many staff were saved because they were either out to lunch or were behind security screens. The building was later closed while police carried out forensic tests.
"Apart from staff in the courtroom everybody was fine and they've all been sent home now," said Ms Marshall. "It's the first time we've ever had an incident like this in many years of court service."