ARMED police have swooped on Great Malvern Hotel before taking a man away in a van.

A riot van and several police cars pulled up outside the Graham Road hotel at around 10.45am today (February 4), with two officers carrying guns, according to a witness.

“We have got several police vehicles and two policemen carrying serious big guns into the hotel,” she said.

The witness described seeing two police cars, as well as an unmarked police car and a van – while several officers were in “tactical gear” – before a man was brought out of the hotel at around 11am.

“They’ve just walked a man out, who appeared to be naked but shrouded with a cover, and put him into the van,” she said.

Graham Road was closed off but appears to have now been re-opened.

Eye-witness Richard Spencer arrived in the town centre as the events were unfolding.

He said: "The police had blocked off Graham Road between the crossroads and the Edith Walk junction, but I was able to come up Broads Bank.

"By the time I came up, there were lots of armed officers, some of them coming out of the building.

"A white male in his 30s who was wrapped in a blanket or sheet was taken out of the hotel and put in a police van.

Ashleigh Humphrey, aged 49, at the Crusty Cob sandwich shop said: "The police appeared to be looking at the top corner window of the hotel facing the main street.

"Malvern is quiet, it's surprising you get this sort of thing happening around here. It's good the police reacted so quickly."

Ann Regan, 40, at the Crusty Cob said: "Two police cars rushed to the scene./ Officers got out, rushed into the building. More and more arrived - a police car and an unmarked BMW X5. They brought someone out and into the back of the van.

Another witness, who did not want to be named, said: "I saw the police put on bullet-proof vests, helmets and readying guns. They also had a battering ram.

"The man they brought down had a blanket draped over him - he was half-naked."

Police said 15 officers were deployed, some of them armed.

Sergeant Dave Knight said: “We got a call at 9.45am to say there were concerns for somebody at the hotel who was potentially going to harm themselves, and as a result officers were deployed. He has been arrested.

“He is receiving treatment a Worcestershire Royal. There was concerns he wanted to harm himself and we’ve gone and made sure he doesn’t and he’s getting treatment at the hospital.”

Inspector Andrew Smith said: "Due to the nature of the report, that a man was in possession of bladed weapons, armed officers were deployed to the scene along with non-armed officers, as a precautionary measure.

"This was a contained incident which resolved peacefully and there was no wider risk to members of the public."