More than 30 officers piled into a Glasgow pub after an emergency alert was triggered - in a bid to remove a man who fell asleep at his table.
Almost 20 patrol cars responded to the emergency alarm being raised at the Sir John Moore pub on Argyle Street following reports of a ‘disturbance’ on Tuesday evening.
It was later revealed a 39-year-old man had been arrested after reacting aggressively towards staff when asked to leave.
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The Glasgow Times said an officer is understood to have hit a ‘panic button’ on their uniform after being shocked by the man’s response, alerting 16 nearby patrol cars and vans to the incident.
A Police Scotland spokeswoman said she was unable to comment on the investigation as proceedings against the man were now live, however confirmed the emergency response was triggered by a report of an officer being assaulted.
Patrons described getting ‘a fright’ when they saw officers arrive, comparing the ‘over the top’ response to a ‘terrorist incident’.
The man, who is understood to have fallen asleep at his table, was furious when he was woken up and responded poorly when police arrived to calm the situation.
The alert meant all of the emergency responders arrived at once shortly after 8pm.
Officers can trigger the panic alarm if they are threatened verbally or fear physical violence, prompting nearby colleagues to react.
Eyewitnesses reported seeing a “squad” of police vehicles arriving on the street.
Paul Carroll, 62, a labourer from Maryhill, said: “I thought it was a terrorist incident when all the police cars turned up outside.
"There were 15 on this side of the street and four on the other and two others that left.
“It was crazy. I couldn’t believe my eyes as they all ran into the pub.”
Carol Qua, 57, a catering supervisor from Castlemilk, added: “Someone could be getting murdered somewhere in the city and there’s 20 cop cars here for this.
"It was unbelievable.”
Bosses at the pub declined to comment, but JD Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon said: “Circumstances meant that more police attended the incident than normally would have been expected.
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“If Police Scotland felt that was the appropriate response, then we will support them in that.”
A Police Scotland spokeswoman added: "Police Scotland can confirm a 39-year-old man has been arrested in connection with a disturbance within premises on Argyle Street in Glasgow.
"We were made aware at around 8.30pm on Tuesday February 11."
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