A MAN shot by armed police in Knaphill has been identified as ex-soldier Richard Pell.

Pell, better known as 'Ricky' around the village, was shot in the shoulder by armed officers after threatening to cause harm to himself and others outside his home in Oak Tree Road on Wednesday night.

He remains in a stable condition at St George's Hospital in Tooting.

Neighbours had to be evacuated over fears the former squaddie had planted an explosive device in the property.

The investigation has been referred the Independent Police Complaints Commission who last night revealed Mr Pell was carrying a ball-bearing gun when he was shot.

Mr Pell, who is in his 40s, was drinking at the Anchor Pub in the High Street prior to the incident.

Pub manager Angela Pearson, 25, says she could not imagine frail Mr Pell, who walks with a cane, could pose such a threat.

She said: "We couldn't believe what was going on, Knaphill is normally very quiet and you don't expect these sorts of things to happen, especially from someone like Ricky.

"He can barely stand without his walking stick so you wonder how he could be capable of something like that.

"The police wouldn't have shot him for no reason so he must have provoked them into taking action - it's so strange to see a person all the time and then hear about them doing something crazy.

"I saw him in the pub that day and he seemed his normal talkative self, you wouldn't have thought anything like that was about to happen - he must have flipped."

Angela's grandfather Keith said more needed to be done to help ex-servicemen and women and that Pell was clearly not in a 'stable state of mind'.

He added: "I'm not saying the shooting was unjust but he shouldn't have been in that position to start with, having spoken to him in the pub it is clear that he needed help."

On Friday evening July 27) police confirmed a man in his 40s has been arrested on suspicion of possession of an imitation firearm and use of a firearm to make threats.

A man in his 30s who was arrested at the scene on suspicion of communicating false information about a hoax bomb was  released with no further action.

But he was subsequently rearrested by the UK Border Agency on suspicion of immigration offences and remains in police custody while the matter is investigated.