A 51-year-old man from the Derbyshire area has been arrested on suspicion of possession of a firearm following an incident in West Kirby this afternoon.
Officers arrested the man outside an address on Leigh Road after a fellow motorist reported having been threatened by a man with a handgun on Victoria Road a few minutes earlier following a brief, verbal dispute.
A spokesperson for Merseyside Police said: “The man was arrested and the car was searched, during which a suspected air weapon was seized. However due to concerns about a number of other items in his car, a cordon was put in place as a precaution whilst specialist search officers were called.
“Further searches are being carried out and as a precaution residents living nearby have been advised to stay indoors. The EOD have also been called to the scene as a precaution.
“The safety cordon has led to a number of roads in the area being closed and motorists are advised to find an alternative route through West Kirby while the police incident remains ongoing.”
There are multiple emergency services, including the bomb squad, police, ambulance, fire and an incident response unit at the scene.
Also in attendance was a vehicle from Merseyside Police’s specialist Matrix unit which targets Serious Organised Crime.
Local residents living in Leigh Road said they were not allowed to return to their homes and were being directed to the nearby church hall.
The junction of Darmonds Green and Leigh Road is a quiet residential area, near to St Agnes RC Church and Hoylebank – a sheltered housing scheme.
