Yong Jin Kim, 49, was driving away from Castle Towers before 1pm when he saw three officers stop a man in a ute. Police with guns drawn in Castle Hill, where a man was shot dead this afternoon. Credit:Rowan Taylor ''He was right there, just next to me, and I was driving trying to turn left – he was on my right hand side. A couple of cars of police came and they told him to get out of the car. ''The police told me to reverse after that. There were three shots and then I drove backwards. It was incredible, it was really loud and there was smoke." Assistant Commissioner Denis Clifford said at a press conference this afternoon that a triple-0 call was made at 12.45pm reporting that a man with a gun had been seen in a ute on Showground Road at Castle Hill.



The description of the ute was circulated over police radio and plainclothes officers saw the ute when they ran out of the police station, at the intersection of Castle and Pennant streets, he said.



Mr Clifford would not say if the man - aged in his 30s - fired any shots or if he had any physical contact with the officers.

"Generally speaking, anyone who is driving around with a firearm, I suggest poses a threat, not only to the police, but to the community," he said. A tarpaulin covers a car linked to a fatal shooting outside the police station on Castle Street, Castle Hill. Credit:Natalie Roberts He was not able to say how many gunshot wounds the man had, saying that he "did not want to be premature" in speculating about what happened. Mr Clifford would not say if the ute was registered to the man who died but said he did not believe it was stolen. He said officers interviewed many witnesses and the investigation would be overseen by the Professional Standards Command, an internal body that oversees police performance and conduct, and reports to a deputy commissioner.

The man has not been formally identified. They circled the car and pulled their guns and they were standing around the car, guns out, and it all just happened really fast Mr Clifford said the three officers involved in the incident had five to 12 years' experience with the NSW Police. They were being supported by their colleagues and counselling was being offered to them, he added. 'Flashed their police badges' Witness Luke Timp, who was outside Castle Hill Community Centre about 40 metres away from the shooting, said: "They ran out in front of the car and flashed their police badges.

"Then the man in the car must've done something because they all pulled out their weapons and then we heard three loud bangs. "And then all the cops came running out from [the police station] and started getting people to evacuate from their parked cars and closing off the area." Theresa Sakr was inside the library when the drama unfolded and saw the incident. ''They circled the car and pulled their guns and they were standing around the car, guns out, and it all just happened really fast,'' Ms Sakr said. ''I heard what would've been two or three gun shots. I was quite shocked after I heard the first couple.''

Christina Callaghan was also inside the library studying when panic struck the high school students. ''We heard like three shots, we thought maybe it was a car breaking down or something,'' Ms Callaghan said. 'Everyone started screaming' ''We heard the gun shots consecutively and they were really loud. Then everyone started screaming inside the library so we ran over to the window and had a look.'' The Hills News said there were unconfirmed reports a man was confronted by officers after threatening another person with a gun.

A tarpaulin has been draped over the side of a vehicle believed to have been involved in the shooting on Castle Street, near Pennant Street, about 12.50pm. Rowan Taylor saw the shooting and took photos of the events on his mobile phone. "I was just in shock and I looked around and as it happened I thought, 'I'd better get out of here,'" he said. "It was just like a 'boom' noise. It was really quick and I just wanted to get out of there as soon as I saw the gun." One man told smh.com.au he was in his home with his mother when he heard three gunshots.

"My mother saw several policemen with their guns drawn," the man, who asked not to be named, said. He said he had not seen any bodies on the street, suggesting the victim may have been in the car. "I saw more than 10 policemen on Pennant Street. There was a car in the middle of Pennant Street and it was covered with a dark green tarp by police," he said, adding that he believed the vehicle was a silver Toyota ute. Officers in bullet-proof vests A man who dropped his children off at the shopping centre, just opposite the police station, said he saw officers running out of the station in bullet-proof vests.

The caller told Fairfax Radio that two silver cars had been stopped by police who seemed to be seeking information. A woman named Sharyn, who did not want her surname published, said lots of people came out of the shopping centre after the shooting. "There's quite a few people coming out and trying to have a look and see what's going on, with lots of police running around trying to stop people," she said. "There's just a car in the middle of the road with a cover over it." Police at the station said they were unable to talk to the media.

Lyn Bastin, whose business Temple Skincare looks out on to Castle Street, told Hills News she thought the shots were "a car backfiring". She said she went outside and smelled gun smoke. A Transport NSW spokesman said Pennant Street was closed between Castle Street and Showground Road in both directions. SYDNEY SHOOTINGS IN PAST TWO MONTHS Loading

Sept 26: Teenager shot by police in his Holmes Street, Colyton home following reported break-in.

Sept 26: Man charged with murder following shooting death of man at Bonnyrigg the day before.

Sept 6: Shots fired at a Revesby house in south-west Sydney.

Sept 6: Shots fired at a unit in Eden Street, Arncliffe.

Sept 5: Man found in Bursill Street, Guildford, with a shotgun wound to his upper thigh.

Aug 30: Up to a dozen shots fired between two cars in Greenacre.

Aug 25: Bullet holes found in a car on Lackey Street, Merrylands.

Aug 24: Bullets hit a house on Francis Street, Fairfield.

Aug 22: Pizza shop hit on Merrylands Road, Merrylands.

Aug 22: Two men shot in Barcom Street, Merrylands, in domestic dispute.

Aug 23: Bullets hit a house on Lachlan Street, Bossley Park.

Aug 21: Bullets hit a house on Eddy Street, Merrylands West.

Aug 20: Bullets hit a hairdressing salon on Harris Street, Fairfield.

Aug 19: Bullets hit a house on Mallacoota Street, Wakeley, near Fairfield. - with AAP and Steven Spierings and Elly Glendenning of the Hills News

