A police officer has been praised as a “hero” for calmly confronting the suspected Toronto van crash driver.

Video footage showed the police officer staring down the suspect, later identified as Alek Minassian, at gunpoint in the middle of a road, while he pointed what appeared to be a gun and shouted, “Kill me”.

Images broadcast by Canadian media showed the suspect pulling an object from his side a number of times, and aiming at the officer.

As the suspect shouted “Kill me”, the unnamed officer replied, “No, get down”. When the suspect then said, “I have a gun in my pocket,” the officer responded, ”I don’t care. Get down”.

Eventually Mr Minassian was seen to turn around with his hands in the air, and then to lie on the ground.

The 25-year-old suspect was arrested “without incident”, authorities later said, and the non-violent end to the confrontation won praise from viewers.

Mr Minassian is believed to have been behind the wheel of a rented white van which mowed down pedestrians in Toronto on Monday afternoon. Ten people were killed and another 15 injured.

A lone police officer (R) confronts the man suspected of driving a van into pedestrians in Toronto (L) as he points an object that looks like a gun (rayy0889/Twitter/Screengrab)

He is due in court at 10am local time, when police said they would reveal further details.

One Twitter user said “Thank you to the officer who showed composure, courage and ethics”, while Lauren Ash, an actor, added that the officer “showed the world that he could do his job effectively without immediate deadly force”.

Several injured after van ploughs into pedestrians in Toronto

Mike McCormack, president of the Toronto Police Association, told The Globe and Mail: “This officer looked at what was going on and determined he could handle it the way that he did. People are right, this guy is a hero.”

Toronto van attack: in pictures Show all 10 1 /10 Toronto van attack: in pictures Toronto van attack: in pictures The front end damage of the van that a driver used to hit several pedestrians in Toronto. AFP/Getty Toronto van attack: in pictures A lone police officer confronts the man suspected of driving the rented white van. rayy0889/Twitter/Screengrab Toronto van attack: in pictures Alek Minassian, 25, of Richmond Hill, a suburb north of Toronto, was arrested after he drove the vehicle into pedestrians. LinkedIn Toronto van attack: in pictures 10 people were killed in the city on Monday, 23rd April. AP Toronto van attack: in pictures Farzad Salehi consoles his wife, Mehrsa Marjani, who was at a nearby cafe and witnessed the aftermath. AP Toronto van attack: in pictures Emergency services closed Yonge Street after the van mounted a pavement crashing into a crowd of pedestrians. AP Toronto van attack: in pictures A covered body lies on Yonge Street. EPA Toronto van attack: in pictures Police inspect the van involved with the collision. Getty Toronto van attack: in pictures People sign a memorial for the victims. AP Toronto van attack: in pictures Police officers stand by a covered body. Aaron Vincent Elkaim/The Canadian Press via AP

Gary Clement, a retired Royal Canadian Mounted Police superintendent with 34 years’ experience of policing, said it was “quite clear” Mr Minassian wanted to goad the officer into shooting him.

“I would say this individual met the right police officer,” Mr Clement added. “Nobody knows how they’re going to react. In this situation a lot of it comes down to muscle memory. This guy reacted in a very mature manner.”