British police arrest a man after a car crashed into the gates of Downing Street

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London’s Metropolitan Police arrested a man on Thursday after he drove a car into the security gates protecting Downing Street, where British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt have their official residences.

THE accident took place around 4.20pm. Police said there were no injuries. “Armed police arrested a man at the scene on charges of felony mischief and dangerous driving,” the Met said.

When asked if the incident was being treated as potentially related to terrorism, the Met said, “An investigation is ongoing.” Sunak was in his office at Downing Street at the moment.

Photos taken at the scene showed a middle-aged white man in handcuffs being led away by officers.

Whitehall, the main road running through Downing Street from Trafalgar Square to Parliament Square, has been cordoned off. People poured onto the barricades, behind which was a massive police presence, including officers with sniffer dogs.

Footage of the car, a silver Kia, moments earlier showed it on the opposite side of Whitehall from Downing Street, outside the Ministry of Defense, towards Parliament Square. It then pulled away and crossed the road at a slow speed and then slowed down again as it approached Downing Street before coming to a stop in front of the tall wrought iron gates.

A witness told the BBC he saw police with Taser guns aimed at a man who was being held face down on the pavement. He was later arrested and taken from the scene by police officers.

Within an hour of the crash, police had raised the cordon and traffic was flowing freely past Downing Street again.

There were no early indications that Thursday’s collision was related to terrorism. After the initial flurry of security activity, pedestrians were allowed to walk freely on the other side of Whitehall, which security sources said was a good indication that there was no wider threat.

The last terrorism-related incident in the UK’s seat of government was in 2017 when Khalid Masood, a 52-year-old Briton, drove a car into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge before stabbing a policeman to death outside parliament .