Security scare in heart of London

Hostage negotiators have brought an end to a security scare in the heart of London.

Tube stations were shut down and a huge cordon went up when a man stormed into a building in Tottenham Court Road, with what looked like gas canisters strapped to his body.

He threatened staff in a fifth floor office, smashed windows and ordered people inside to throw filing cabinets and computers out onto the street.

The man has now surrendered to police.

"Stuff's just smashing out the window, then we just saw police getting closer and closer, and at the end there was probably six or eight armed police running down the alley," one witness says.

Streets were cleared and nearby tube stations shut down.

This woman was confronted by the man in her fifth floor office:

"Strapped up in gasoline cylinders... basically he threatened to blow up the office, said he doesn't care about his life, he doesn't care about anything, he's going to blow up everybody."

It's believed he was upset at being refused a licence to drive heavy trucks.

Photo: Getty Images