Birmingham shooting: Man killed in broad daylight

• Police launch murder investigation after man is shot in broad daylight

• Shooting took place in Dove Cot pub in Cockshut Hill, Birmingham ar atround 5.45pm

The gunmen fled the Dove Cote pub in Cockshut Hill, Birmingham before armed officers sealed off the scene and directed people away from the area at around 5.45pm yesterday.

Chief Superintendent Alex Murray said: “We believe this may have been a targeted attack which happened in a busy pub in broad daylight.

“At this stage we do not believe this is connected with any other incident.”

He added: “This would have been a shocking incident for witnesses and will have a huge impact on the local community.

“I want to reassure residents that we are working hard to find the person responsible for this attack and are following a number of lines of inquiry at this early stage.”

Speaking at the scene of the shooting, he later told ITV News: “There were reports of shots being fired in the pub.

“Officers attended the pub and found a man who had been shot.

“First aid was administered, paramedics were in attendance and our firearms officers came.

“Unfortunately that man has now died.

“Because of that, our sincerest sympathies go out to his friends and his family.”

He also appealed directly to locals in what is a busy residential area to come forward with information.

“We appeal to anyone who has seen something, you might have seen something suspicious, you might have seen someone driving off, you might have seen someone running off ,” he said.

“Every single piece of information is really important to help us catch this killer.”

The Dovecote pub where the shooting happened is run by national chain the Stonegate Pub Company.

A spokesman for Stonegate said none of the staff had been hurt in the incident.

In a statement released on behalf of the company, it said: “We confirm an incident took place at the Dovecote, Birmingham.

“This is currently being investigated by the police and we are assisting them with their enquiries.

“The pub is currently closed and (will) remain so while the investigation continues.”

A Yardley resident, who declined to be named, said there were a large number of uniform police officers on the scene.

He said: “Cockshut Hill is closed at the Dove Cote pub, and a bus was stopped further down the hill.

“It looked like they were moving the passengers to another coach, because it’s right on the bus route.

“There’s a lot of uniform and traffic officers, but I couldn’t see any armed officers when I was down there.”

He added: “There are a lot of wild rumours flying around about it right now.”