Armed officers have shot dead a man during a swoop on a property in Goudhurst.

Officers went to an address in Smiths Lane yesterday evening, at 8.30pm, as part of a pre-planned operation in connection with their investigations into the murder of a 73-year-old Roy Blackman in Biddenden last month.

Shots were fired. A man was fatally injured and a firearm has been recovered.

Police said that formal identification of the dead man had not yet taken place, but the family of a man that officers wanted to locate in connection with the murder in Biddenden, have been informed.

The matter has now been referred to the Independent Police Complaints Commission as is mandatory for all police shootings.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said they were investigating the police shooting of a 36-year-old man in Goudhurst.

IPCC investigators are at scene to oversee post-incident procedures. Tests are being carried out on "a non-police firearm" found at the scene, and forensic examination will continue throughout the day.

Mr Blackman was killed on March 21 after an apparent burglary at his home in Headcorn Road.

Officers have already made a number of arrests.

A post mortem established Mr Blackman died from multiple blunt force injuries to his head, neck, chest and abdomen.

A mechanic and bird breeder, Mr Blackman was well-known at Maidstone Market, where friends described him as generous and hard-working.