THIS footage shows the tense standoff between the Toronto van attack driver and a hero cop on the streets of Canada's biggest city.

Suspect Alek Minassian can be seen brandishing what appears to be a gun and screaming at the officer to "shoot him in the head".

21 A tense standoff saw a policeman face down Alek Minassian just moments after he had mown down pedestrians on a Toronto pavement

But the hero cop refused to shoot the rampage driver and instead repeatedly ordered him to "get down".

It came just moments after the socially awkward tech student "deliberately drove a van down a Toronto pavement killing ten people and injuring another 15".

The video begins with the siren wailing and a police officer just 30 feet away, crouched behind a car, gun drawn, yelling.

Suddenly, the van door swings open and a black clad Minassian steps out pointing what looks like a gun at the brave cop.

21 A hero cop refused to gun down the Toronto van rampage suspect as be begged him to 'shoot me in the head'

21 Suspect Alek Minassian, 25, was arrested and remains in custody Credit: Linkedin

The two start shouting at each other but the sound is muffled by the siren — except for the words “get down”.

The 25-year-old keeps his weapon pointed, quick-drawing the gun, as the officer turns the siren off. He keeps yelling, “C’mon get down.”

Then, the suspect, responds with the demand, “Kill me.”

But the cop won’t fire instead saying: “No, get down.”

21 Police pin the suspect Alek Minassian against a police car while arresting him following a tense stand off Credit: CBS

21 Ariel footage gave another view of how the stand off unfolded as the officer subdued the attacker

“I have a gun in my pocket,” the driver says, urging the officer to “shoot me in the head” as he walks towards him, gun pointed straight at him.

“I don’t care! Get down!” the officer says.

But the officer continues to inch forward repeatedly telling Minassian to get on the ground, refusing to discharge his weapon.

Eventually he appears to toss the object to the side and brave cops pin him down following the tense 37 second exchange.

Ariel footage also showed the officer facing down the suspect and him eventually tossing his gun aside and being pinned to the floor.

21 Ten people have been killed and 16 left injured after a van mowed down pedestrians in Toronto, Canada Credit: Getty Images - Getty

What we know so far:

At least ten people have died and 15 left injured after a van mounted a pavement in Toronto, Canada at 1.30pm local time

The white Ryder rental van drove into pedestrians for up to a mile reaching speeds of up to 70mph

Suspect identified as Alek Minassian, 25, who was quickly arrested and remains in custody

Police say Minassian was not known to authorities and local reports say he "isn't linked to any terror groups"

Footage of the arrest shows the suspect telling police to "shoot me in the head"

Witnesses say "a young girl and a woman with a baby stroller" were thrown into the air

G7 ministers met in Toronto to discuss terrorism and cyber security

President of the Toronto Police Association Mike McCormack praised the officer for his bravery.

He said he had come face-to-face with a man who was “making like he has a weapon, threatening the officer’s life, trying to get the officer to shoot him”.

McCormack told reporters: “The officer would have been doing a continual threat assessment.

“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.”

The Police chief added that the cop in question told him afterwards that he was “just doing his job”.

He continued: “That’s what everyone’s thinking: Great, he did his job and arrested this guy and may have prevented further deaths.

“But he’s more concerned with 10 people being dead, 15 people being injured, why now and what’s happening in this city.

“He’s shaken up by the whole thing, and shaken up by the magnitude.

“I think the full impact of how horrible this whole thing is just setting in on our people now.

“Like, this is crazy, this is insane, we’ve never seen this.”

Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders later identified the suspect as Minassian, adding that he had not previously been known to authorities and they do not know his motives.

A LinkedIn profile, described him as a student at Seneca College and from Richmond Hill, a northern suburb of the Canadian city.

It also listed him as a software developer who was working on a number of apps including one to find parking spots in the area.

Joseph Pham, 25, who took a computer programming class with Minassian at Seneca, told The Star he was at school just last week and described him as “socially awkward.”

He said: “He kept to himself. He didn’t really talk to anyone."

21 A body lies covered after being hit by the speeding van Credit: Getty Images - Getty

21 Officers stand in the cordoned off street after the attack claimed the lives of 10 people Credit: EPA

21 An aerial view of the destruction that unfolded yesterday afternoon on the streets of Canada's largest city Credit: CTV

21 Police eventually arrested Minassian following a tense stand off where he demanded he shoot him in the head

Another classmate said he had a "significant social or mental disability" claiming he had several physical ticks including shaky hands and tapping his head.

He added that he didn't think Minassian knew how to drive claiming he "wouldn't know how a steering wheel works".

Minassian is reportedly not believed to be linked to any terror groups, but a Facebook post apparently written by him referred to the "Supreme Gentleman Elliot Rodger," CBC reports.

Rodger, 22, was responsible for a deadly rampage in Isla Vista, Calif., that left six people dead and a dozen more injured in 2014.

Police appear to catch suspect after multiple pedestrians hit by van in Toronto, Canada

21 The white Ryder rental van was left abandoned on a pavement in the busy north-central part of Canada's largest city Credit: CTV

21 Emergency services rushed to the scene at 1:30pm local time Credit: Twitter

21 The suspect was seen dropping an object in a stand-off with a police officer

21 Police seal off the area while a victim lays on the road Credit: Alamy Live News

Witnesses described the attack as "a war zone" after the white rental truck wrought death and destruction driving at up to 70mph for a mile along the busy street.

A woman pushing a stroller and elderly members of the public were among those flung into the air by the speeding rental truck at 1.30pm local time (18:30 GMT) yesterday.

Uber Driver Jalal Faghihi told MacLean's Canada: "The car was swerving on the road. It hit a street sign and lost its bumper.

"After it hit the two people, it pulled back onto the road and did the same thing on another part of the sidewalk.

"It was doing a zig-zag. Hit and go, hit and go, it didn’t stop. He just kept going.

"There was a lot of noise. My window was down—people were screaming.

"It was unbelievable, but some people have mental problems and want to do something crazy, or maybe it was some terrorist organisation wanting to cause chaos."

One witness told CNN the driver appeared to have been targeting people during the lunchtime rush.

He said: "This person was intentionally doing this, he was killing everybody. He kept going, he kept going. People were getting hit, one after another."

Another said he saw people "strewn all over the road" while one bystander claimed the driver appeared "in control" of the vehicle as it hit pedestrians.

21 A woman cries after witnessing the van attack which left at least nine dead Credit: Reuters

Eyewitness Nick says he saw a vehicle on the sidewalk 'in control' hitting pedestrians in Toronto crash

21 An aerial shot of the abandoned rental van which is said to have travelled at speeds of up to 70mph Credit: CTV

The bloodbath on Monday unfolded just 18 miles from G7 ministers, including Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, who were meeting to discuss terrorism and cyber security.

Footage from bystanders show dozens of pedestrians gathering victims who were hit by the vehicle.

21 A mowed down victim is helped by nearby pedestrians Credit: Reuters

21 A distressed woman talks to a police officer in a cordoned off area Credit: AP:Associated Press

Witnesses describe horror moment van hit pedestrians in Toronto

21 Local media reports the van mounted the pavement before fleeing the scene Credit: Twitter

Buildings and workplaces in the surrounding area have been put on lockdown while nearby subway stations were closed.

Cops have since cordoned off the southbound lanes of Yonge Street and have urged locals to avoid the area.

According to CBC one eyewitness said he had seen at least four bodies lying covered on the ground.

One eyewitness told a local reporter "He was in control of what he was doing, he knew what he was doing from what I can. I was in shock but from what I can tell that's what he was doing."

Aftermath of Toronto horror crash leaves smashed glass and personal items behind

21 Toronto police have since cordoned off the scene and have urged locals to avoid the area Credit: CTV

21 An aerial shot view of Yonge Street and Finch Avenue which cops have now cordoned off Credit: Twitter

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau comments after van hits pedestrians in Toronto

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Rental van company Ryder confirmed it was co-operating with the authorities after one of its vehicles had been used in the attack.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said: "Our thoughts are obviously with all of those affected. We are still gathering information. We will keep Canadians updated."

Toronto Mayor John Tory paid his respects to the victims saying: "My thoughts are with those affected by this incident and the frontline responders who are working to help those injured. I have offered any and all assistance that the city can provide to police to help this investigation."

Toronto Mayor John Tory assures local citizens that 'the city is in safe hands'

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