Investigators have found a gun inside the car where a man was shot dead by police on the M62 motorway.
Mohammed Yassar Yaqub, 27, died after firearms officers stopped a white Audi on a slip road and at least three shots were fired near Huddersfield, West Yorkshire.
West Yorkshire Police confirmed the vehicle was pulled over as part of a ‘pre-planned’ operation regarding alleged criminal possession of a firearm.
The Independent Police Complaints Commission has launched an investigation and confirmed a firearm had been found inside the vehicle.
(Photo: Facebook)
(Photo: PA)
A statement said: “What appears to be a non-police issue firearm was discovered in the vehicle in which Mr Yaqub was travelling, and is being further examined.”
In a statement, Mr Yaqub’s family said they are ‘in shock and distraught’ at his death.
A spokesman for the family said: “Mr Yaqub’s family are in shock, and are distraught. They would ask the media to respect their privacy at this difficult time.
(Photo: PA)
(Photo: PA)
“The family are fully aware that the incident that led to the death of Mr Yaqub is currently being investigated by the IPCC and they do not wish to make any further comment at this stage.”
A total of five men have been arrested in connection with the operation after two vehicles were pulled over in separate locations.
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Aerial footage shows the aftermath of the M62 shooting
Mr Yaqub was acquitted seven years ago in the case of an attempted murder in Birkby.
Yaqub, who was 21 at the time, was accused of being one of the gunmen in a drive-by shooting on Birkby Hall Road in September 2009.
The case against him was thrown out at Bradford Crown Court in May 2010 due to a lack of evidence.
(Photo: Huddersfield Examiner/MEN Media)
(Photo: PA)
(Photo: PA)
Friends paid tribute to the father on Facebook, offering condolences to his family.
One friend wrote: “Such sad news this morning, you were no angel but you were still one of the good guys and did not deserve this.
“My thoughts are with all those who loved you and I pray they can find the strength to fight through this.”
Another added: “Regardless of the circumstances and who did what, 2 children woke up today without a father, that reason alone is heartbreaking. My thoughts go out to the young children.”
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Forensic investigators examine the scenes of the M62 shooting
After confirming the operation was not terror-related, West Yorkshire Police said it was “related to information received about criminal possession of a firearm.”
Police stopped two vehicles in separate locations and arrested five men during the operation which occurred about 6pm on Monday.
Three arrests occurred at the scene of the shooting and two occurred in a related stop of a vehicle in the Chain Bar area of Bradford at about the same time.
(Photo: PA)
(Photo: PA)
Motorists had initially believed the police presence near the M62 was due to a ‘bad crash’, but hours later police revealed a man had died after being shot.
Earlier a West Yorkshire Police spokesman said more than one arrest had been made near the M62 and those arrested had required hospital treatment for injuries “not related to firearm discharge”.
No officers were injured in the incident, the spokesman said.
Armed police were pictured inside Huddersfield Royal Infirmary’s A&E department.
(Photo: London News Pictures Ltd)
The police watchdog, the Independent Police Complaints Commission, has been informed as a matter of procedure.
Eyewitness Shahnaz Malik said she saw the swarm of police from her back garden.
She said: “It was surreal. There were a lot of police buzzing around looking into the car. I didn’t know what I was looking at.
“It all happened so quickly but then it was as if everything had stood still for a moment. You could see the bullet holes in the windscreen.
“On Monday night it was dark of course but the following morning you could see the holes in the car.
“It’s horrendous and quite frightening to have something like this happen here.”
(Photo: London News Pictures Ltd)
(Photo: Devon Hope)
Eyewitness Rahul Tandon told BBC Radio Leeds the incident unfolded as he was stopped by police on the exit slip road of Junction 24.
He said: “As we pulled off the motorway we could see a lot of police vehicles, a lot of flashing lights.
“Over the next 10 to 15 minutes there was frenetic activity as more and more police vehicles arrived.
“At about 6.15 to 6.20, policemen were running up the slope to an ambulance and beckoning them to come quickly.”
Motorists were later told to leave by reversing up the slip road and back onto the M62.
Gemma Wilson, a local councillor, told Sky News: “I assumed at first it was a crash but realised if it was, it was a major one due to the volume of police in the area and the wide area that was cordoned off.
“It was obviously concerning to see so many police cars as clearly something serious had happened so close to home.”
(Photo: London News Pictures Ltd)
(Photo: Dave Nic/Facebook)
West Yorkshire Police said in a statement: “West Yorkshire Police can confirm the operation related to information received about criminal possession of a firearm, as a result of which vehicles were stopped at two separate locations.
“The five men arrested are currently in custody.”
West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner Mark Burns-Williamson said: “I was made aware of the firearms incident yesterday resulting from a pre-planned police operation near the M62 at Huddersfield.
“The operation is related to information received about a criminal possession of a firearm and I have been fully updated by the Chief Constable. The incident is not terrorism related.
“The Independent Police Complaints Commission have now launched an investigation following a mandatory referral to them from West Yorkshire Police and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage until more details are known.”
Monday’s incident was the first fatal shooting incident by West Yorkshire Police since 2010.
There have been five fatal police shootings in the UK in the last nine months.