A man has been arrested for possession of an imitation firearm following an incident in Sittingbourne last night.

Officers were called at 8.17pm after reports from a member of staff at Sainsbury’s in the Avenue of Remembrance that a man in the car park was waving what was believed to be a pistol.

Armed response vehicles attended and a man was later arrested in the The Forum car park and is currently being questioned at Sittingbourne Police Station.

Sittingbourne Neighbourhood Inspector Evan Jones said he hoped the quick arrest sent out a clear message to offenders.

“We want to reassure people that we take incidents involving imitation weapons extremely seriously,” he said.

“Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) will be patrolling the area today and this evening and speaking to local residents to reassure them, stressing that this was an isolated incident.”

* Any witnesses to the incident are asked to come forward with information and contact police on 01795 419349 or Crimestoppers in confidence on 0800 555111.