A BOURNEMOUTH man was arrested after a five-hour armed police stand-off in Southampton.

The 35-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of threats to kill and malicious communications following an incident on Friday, July 12.

A police stand-off with a knifeman saw 17 police vehicles attend and armed officers swarm a block of flats leading to an arrest.

Officers swiftly shut down Chapel Road in Southampton after being 'confronted' by the knife-wielding man in a flat in Park Reach at 10.40am.

During the stalemate, pupils at nearby school were kept inside.

The air ambulance was also spotted circling overhead.

The stand-off came to an end at 3.25pm, when bystanders saw a man being led into the back of a police van in handcuffs, and the armed officers were seen packing away their gear.

A Hampshire Police spokesperson said: "A 35-year-old man from Bournemouth has been arrested on Chapel Road at 3.25pm today (Friday, July 12) on suspicion of threats to kill and malicious communications."

Rumours had swirled on social media a gun or a child had been involved in the incident - but police confirmed that this was not the case.

They did confirm however that 'a woman was in the property for a short while but there is no suggestion at this time that she was being held against her will'.

"This is not linked to any other incident and there is no further risk to the public," they added.