Birmingham Prison chaos: Masked men 'carrying gun' flee after setting cars ON FIRE
TWO masked men "armed with a gun" sparked chaos outside Birmingham Prison this afternoon after setting multiple cars on fire.
Birmingham prison: Police report 'two masked men with firearm'
West Midlands Police has launched a manhunt for the pair, who fled the scene after dousing the cars in liquid and set them ablaze.
Two fire engines raced to the car park at around 1:30pm, with as many as 10 vehicles thought to have been torched in the attack.
Images of the burnt-out vehicles have been shared on social media as police try to track down the perpetrators.
It is believed the men escaped after a jumping over a fence.
Shocked eyewitness Warren Davies, 21, said he saw a "big ball of fire" as the vehicles were set alight.
He told Birmingham Live: "I heard the popping of the tyres and windows, and all the police turned up.
"There's a hole in the fence. I come here every day and that fence has never been like that. It's obviously been deliberate."
Forensic officers are conducting a fingertip search of cars in the area, according to local media.
Two masked men were seen to make off in a vehicle
A cordon has been placed around the car park and a police presence remains in place while investigations continue.
A police spokesman said: "We are responding to an incident on a car park outside Birmingham Prison where several cars have been set on fire.
"There are no reported injuries. Two masked men, reportedly armed with a firearm, were seen to make off in a vehicle."
Rob Kellett, the prison's director, said: "An incident took place in the car park across the road from HMP Birmingham at about 1:30pm.
"Nobody has been injured. West Midlands Police and the fire service are in attendance, and a fire has been extinguished."
A West Midlands Fire Service spokesman said two fire engines and 10 firefighters were at the scene.
The prison, which is run by private firm G4S on behalf of the Ministry of Justice, is in the Winson Green area of Birmingham.
The category B jail was built in 1849 and holds 1,450 male prisoners.