Thames Valley Police have issued an update after a man died following a police shooting outside Milton Keynes Central railway station yesterday (01/04).
The incident saw a man shot after police were called to deal with a man that was potentially carrying a firearm outside the station just before 1pm. It has since been confirmed the man was brandishing a knife.
Following the shooting, attempts were made to revive the man but he was pronounced dead on the scene at 1:44pm.
A police cordon was duly set up around the train station, with the area from the main station entrance heading towards Pret a Manger, Starbucks and Subway closed off.
In their statement, Thames Valley Police confirmed officers representing both them and British Transport Police had attended the scene.
Their statement read, “Thames Valley Police is providing an update following the fatal shooting of a man outside Milton Keynes railway station this afternoon (1/4).
“Officers from Thames Valley Police and from British Transport Police were called to reports of a man carrying a firearm at the station on Elder Gate at 12.55pm.
“TVP armed officers responded and challenged a white man who was carrying a knife outside the station. He moved at speed towards officers with the knife before a shot was fired by police.
“Life-saving actions were immediately taken at the scene, but the man was sadly pronounced dead at 1.44pm. We have not yet informed the man’s next of kin so he has not been formally identified.”
Milton Keynes commander, Chief Superintendent Emma Baillie, said, “We understand that this incident may cause concern locally, but we would like to reassure the community that there is no wider risk to the public.”
Thames Valley Police have also confirmed they have made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), who will be carrying out an independent investigation into this incident.
TVP also said, “We would ask people not to share footage or speculate about other details online.
“Officers remain at the scene, which is covering a large area outside the train station. However, the station remains open and trains are running as usual.
“There is disruption to the bus station and taxi rank outside the station as this area is currently part of the scene. Please check before you travel as you may need to seek alternative travel arrangements.”
The IOPC confirmed in their own statement yesterday less than two hours after the incident that they had received the referral and would be opening their own investigation into what happened.
Northampton Town suffered a 2-0 defeat at home to managerless Rotherham United.
Goals from Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu and Sam Nombe saw the Millers win in their first match since the departure of Steve Evans earlier this week.
The defeat means the Cobblers see their gap to the bottom 3 reduced to just four points after 21st placed side Burton Albion won at home to Leyton Orient.
While the Cobblers were chasing a first home win since February 22nd, they faced the test of a Rotherham side under temporary management. The South Yorkshire club had chosen to sack Evans after a 4-0 home defeat by Crawley Town on the weekend, with Matt Hamshaw in temporary charge.
The visitors started stronger, however, with Liam Kelly firing over before Lee Burge had to make saves to stop attempts by Hakeem Odoffin and Nombe.
Having had the early pressure, Rotherham duly took the lead after 22 minutes. Mpanzu ended up being credited as the scorer as the former Luton man deflected Louis Sibley’s long-range effort past Burge and into the back of the net.
After the half-time break, Northampton did offer more as Cameron Dawson had to make a fine stop to keep out Sam Hoskins and later made a further intervention to keep out Cameron McGeehan.
But with 65 minutes on the clock, Rotherham extended their advantage. Northampton failed to clear a Rotherham corner and the ball eventually wound up with Nombe, with the former MK Dons man prodding the ball over the line from 2 yards.
Although substitute Tom Eaves would have a late effort denied by Dawson, there was no way back in the end for the home side, who suffer defeat at Sixfields, with the bad news compounded by word that Burton had beaten Leyton Orient to close the gap.
A tricky test awaits Kevin Nolan’s side in their attempts to pick up what would be a first win in five games at the weekend, when they travel to face Peterborough United in the Nene Valley Derby.
Thames Valley Police confirmed that a man has died after being shot by an armed officer outside Milton Keynes Central railway station.
The incident came after reports reached police of a man carrying a firearm at the station earlier today (01/04), with the shooting happening after a confrontation between officers and the man.
The statement published by Thames Valley Police read, “Officers from Thames Valley Police and British Transport Police were called to reports of a man carrying a firearm at Milton Keynes railway station, Elder Gate, Milton Keynes, at 12.55pm today (1/4).
“Armed officers from Thames Valley Police responded and challenged the man, before shots were fired by police.
“Life-saving actions were immediately taken at the scene, but the man was pronounced dead at 1.44pm.
“There is not believed to be any further risk to the public at this time.
“We will provide more details as soon as we are able to.”
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) have said they will also be launching an investigation into what happened.
In a statement, the IOPC said, “We can confirm we have begun an independent investigation into the fatal shooting of a man by Thames Valley Police (TVP) at Milton Keynes railway station today (1 April).
“We were notified by TVP shortly after the incident and IOPC investigators have been sent to the station and the police post incident procedure to begin gathering information.
“Our thoughts are with the family of the man who died and all those who have been affected by this incident.
“Our role in these circumstances is to independently investigate all of the circumstances surrounding this incident including the actions and decisions taken by the police.
“We declared an independent investigation shortly before 2.30pm and, as it is in its very early stages, no further information is available at this time.”
A police cordon was set up outside the station, with police on the scene.
Rail operators Avanti West Coast and London Northwestern confirmed train services continued to serve the station as normal, but buses and taxi collections were affected.
Tributes have been paid to Betty Webb MBE after the death of the Bletchley Park codebreaker at the age of 101.
Webb’s passing on March 31st 2025 was confirmed yesterday (01/04) in a statement by the Women’s Royal Army Corps Association.
Webb, who was born as Charlotte Webb, had been one of the team of codebreakers who worked at Bletchley Park during the Second World War. In her work, she helped decrypt both German and Japanese messages on behalf of the UK and US.
In 2015, she was awarded an MBE by the British Royal Family, while in 2021 she was also honoured with a Knight of the Légion d’Honneur, the highest military honour awarded by France.
In a brief statement, the WRAC said, “On Monday 31 March 2025 we lost a proud ATS and WRAC veteran, Bletchley code breaker, Knight of the Légion d’Honneur, WRAC Association member, and President of our Birmingham Branch. Betty inspired women in the Army for decades and we will continue to take pride in her service during WWII and beyond, and as a champion of female veterans.”
The Bletchley Park Trust, who run the site in its modern iteration as a museum, also paid tribute.
They said, “It is with great sadness that today (1 April), the Bletchley Park Trust has learnt that Charlotte (Betty) Webb MBE has passed away at the age of 101. Her contributions to Bletchley Park, during World War Two and to ensuring its legacy today, will never be forgotten.
“Betty worked at Bletchley Park as a member of the Auxiliary Territorial Service, the ATS, from 1941until 1945, indexing German messages and later paraphrasing Japanese signals.
“For services to remembering and promoting the work of Bletchley Park, she was appointed MBE in 2015, and in May 2021 was awarded the Legion d’Honneur in recognition of her wartime work.
“Betty was not only a member of the incredible team at Bletchley Park during World War II, but she also dedicated much of her life to raising the profile of Bletchley Park in more recent years. Her tireless efforts in bringing the history of Bletchley Park to a wider audience, through sharing the stories of those who worked here, helped ensure that the vital role of Bletchley Park during World War Two, and its impact on the conflict was recognised.”
MK Dons’ interim head coach Ben Gladwin felt a home reverse against Fleetwood Town summed up a difficult position for the side.
The Dons boss spoke after a difficult afternoon at Stadium MK for the League Two side. After taking the lead through Danilo Orsi’s strike, the concession of four goals sent the Dons on their way to a 4-2 defeat as part of a difficult 2025 where the Dons have only won four times so far since the turn of the year.
Gladwin reflected the defeat was representative of a difficult sequence as the team struggle to consistently get the winning feeling.
He said, “I think it’s unfortunately the reality of where the group are currently at. The first 18 minutes were exactly how we intended with a lot of stuff we’d rehearsed and spoken about it. The intensity and intent to hurt the opposition was there, but then in the last 15 minutes of the first half, I could feel it coming off. Then we concede and it was a real familiar feeling at half-time.
“It’s something I’ve seen here. It’s not at all to throw the players under the bus because we’re all part of that. It’s just about trying to find a solution to bring the players to a place where they can react and overcome adversity. It’s a big part of football. It’s not good enough at all.”
Gladwin was particularly disappointed with the nature of the quartet of Fleetwood goals.
He said, “I’ve just watched a few of them back and they would be hard to explain and justify. They’re almost that bad that they’re not worth mentioning.”
With MK Dons stuck in the bottom half of League Two after a season that has seen the Dons managed by four different people, Gladwin reflected that his task was to try and get the team in the best place possible while he is in charge.
He said, “I understand where it comes from. The amount of scar tissue that’s built up over the year means just currently, where the group is at is not great. But we, me, whoever comes in, whatever happens, it’s like, you can’t just wait for pre-season. Something needs to happen right now. We have a big game on Wednesday to prepare for now and we have to dust ourselves down and find a way to prepare properly for that.”
Having picked up four points away in their time since their last home game, Gladwin said he had hoped the team would be able to prove to home fans they were turning a corner, but reflected the team were still in a place from which they would need to find consistent improvements.
He said, “My message to the players before the game was to show the corner you’ve turned.
“But there’s no excuses. It’s where the group are at and we as coaches and temporary coaches and stuff have to find a solution to put the team in the best places possible and believe me, we are trying our absolute nuts off and the players are trying too. There’s no hiding place from what happened today – we accept it all and as always, we have to learn, move on and try & prepare for the next one.”
