Man 'stabs himself in head' at Heathrow

A man who reportedly stabbed himself in the head at Heathrow Airport has been taken to hospital.

Police are investigating the incident, which began when the man is reported to have started attacking himself outside a shop in Terminal 5 at 5.45pm on Wednesday.

Officers and ambulance services arrived at the airport and took the man, whose injuries were not life-threatening, to hospital, a Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said.

The spokeswoman said nobody else is being sought in connection with the incident.

The man was quickly pinned down by security guards, the Guardian said.

Tamara Lynch, who was on her home to Manchester from Heathrow, told the Guardian: "I did not realise what was going on at first. I came round the corner and there was this poor guy with five or six security guards around him.

"He was stood with his back to the shop window and was stabbing himself in the neck and he opened his jacket up and was trying to stab himself in the chest.

"I could not see what he was using but he was really trying to ram it in. There was blood all the way down the side of his face and down his shirt.

"He then ran towards me and one of the security guards jumped on top of him and pinned him down. He was very distressed but he was not threatening anyone else."

A Heathrow spokesman said on Wedenesday: "The emergency services attended Heathrow Terminal 5 this evening after a male passenger self-harmed. No other passengers were injured and there was no breach of airport security."

The spokesman added that it is believed the man picked up a knife from a shop in the terminal after passing through security. Knives allowed beyond security within airport security tend to have a shorter blade than normal, he said.