Man shot with taser found dead

A man shot with a taser gun by police in Bedfordshire was later found dead after injuring himself.

Armed officers were called to the Goldington area of Bedford after reports of a dispute between a mother and son, Bedfordshire Police said. When they arrived outside the house they found an injured man in his 30s armed with a knife.

The man was shot with a taser gun after threatening officers before returning to the house where he was discovered with "self-inflicted injuries", a force spokeswoman said.

The incident has been referred to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

The spokeswoman said: "Armed officers went to the address after being called to a domestic dispute involving a mother and son. On arrival at the property police found the man in his 30s suffering from injury and armed with a knife.

"He threatened officers and as a result the taser was discharged. The man then retreated into the house alone and when found shortly afterwards by police officers he was in need of urgent medical attention because of subsequently self-inflicting serious injury to himself."

He was taken to Bedford Hospital where he died from the injuries.

The injuries from the taser gun were "minimum", she added.

A post-mortem examination is due to be carried out to establish the cause of death.

The spokeswoman said the IPCC will look into the incident and decide whether to launch an investigation.

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