Gun scare as man arrested over firearm in city mall

The man, who has not been named, was detained following the incident in a shop at Silverburn shopping centre in Pollok, in the south of Glasgow.

It is understand the man was allegedly in possession of a replica gun.

However, despite the scare, festive shoppers were not forced to evacuate the centre, which remained open.

The incident happened at around 2:30pm and is thought to have taken place in the centre’s branch of TK Maxx.

Security personnel from the retailer helped detain the individual before police intervened.

Although the centre remained open, police were still at the scene continuing their investigations three hours later.

The man was taken to Strathclyde Police’s Helen Street station for questioning as part of the investigation.

Judith O’Leary, a spokeswoman for the shopping centre, said: “It was quite an isolated incident which was handled very quickly and very professionally.

“I think shoppers weren’t even aware of the situation and no member of the public was placed in any danger whatsoever.

“Security support at TK Maxx were involved. The team are trained to deal with such incidents.”

Silverburn shopping centre, located on the city’s Barrhead Road, has nearly 100 shops, in addition to its 14 restaurants and cafes. It first opened in 2007 and is one of the largest shopping centres in the UK.

Other retailers trading in the 100,000-square metre centre include Marks & Spencer, Kurt Geiger, Burton and Debenhams.

Silverburn shopping centre is also home to a Tesco Extra superstore.