Police are investigating witness reports that a man who died from gunshot wounds in southeast London had accidentally shot himself.

Officers were called to reports of suspicious activity on Sydenham Road on Sunday afternoon, Metropolitan Police said.

When gunshots were later heard, armed officers and the London Ambulance Service were also called.

Image: The victim is thought to be in his 20s

The man died at 3.50pm.

Forensic teams could be seen photographing the scene in nearby Venner Road.


A 56-year-old woman who lives nearby said she was stuck inside the police cordon for three hours after the shooting.

She said: "He came to shoot someone else, but he ended up shooting himself.

"The bullet bounced off a car window. You can see on the car window where the bullet bounced off it.

"After it happened, the boy he came to shoot stood there filming him."

"He's been there for three hours covered by a sheet. No mum, no dad. It's really sad."

She said she had lived in Sydenham for 25 years and there had been very few incidents.

"It's a nice little area this. It's up and coming," she said.

Two men who were in a nearby pub heard a shot but thought it was a car backfiring because there was no other commotion before or after.

Another man, who didn't want to be named, said: "We've heard three or four different stories - we've heard it was a guy on a moped, someone in a car and then that the (victim) did it to himself."

Adam Cornish, 37, who lives close to the scene, said the area had been largely unaffected by rising levels of violence elsewhere in the capital.

Mr Cornish, who has a two-year-old daughter, said: "I've lived here for five-and-a-half years - you get a few idiots driving up and down too fast but nothing like this."

Ellie Reeves, Labour MP for Lewisham West and Penge, tweeted: "Shocked and saddened to learn of the fatal shooting in Sydenham this afternoon.

"My thoughts are with the victim and their family. This violence has no place in our community."

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 quoting CAD 4860/8Sept or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.