Man accused of ramming Ukrainian ambassador's car and driving at police sectioned

Armed officers opened fire as vehicle was aimed at them, Scotland Yard says

A man arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a car was driven at police outside the Ukrainian embassy in London has been sectioned under the Mental Health Act.

The 40-year-old was detained after armed officers responded to reports that a Mercedes was being repeatedly rammed into the ambassador’s car in Holland Park on Saturday morning.

When police arrived, the vehicle was driven at them, Scotland Yard said.

Armed officers opened fire but the man was arrested without suffering injuries, a spokesperson added.

No details have been given of the suspect's identity or nationality, and the incident is not being treated as terrorist-related.

Ch Supt Andy Walker, from the Metropolitan Police's specialist firearms command, said: “As is standard procedure, an investigation is now ongoing into the discharge of a police firearm during this incident.

“While this takes place, I would like to pay tribute to the officers involved this morning who responded swiftly to this incident and put themselves in harm’s way, as they do every day, to keep the people of London safe.”

One witness Darcy Mercier told the BBC the Mercedes had been “blasting Ukrainian music in some kind of protest against the embassy” after arriving in the area at about 7am.

Police were called at 9.50am when the car was crashed into ambassador Natalia Galibarenko’s official vehicle.

Another witness, Emma Slatter, said: "I think I heard about half a dozen shots. I could see police had got the guy out of the car and they had him on the ground.

"The police seemed in charge. There were probably about eight to 10 guys in full body armour, some with sub-machine guns."

The incident comes just eight days before the second and final round of Ukraine’s presidential elections.