A 60-YEAR-OLD woman suffered leg and arm injuries after gunshots were fired at a house.

Police were called to Richmond Road, Accrington after two shots were fired through the front door.

Detectives believe the shooting is linked to an 'ongoing dispute between a group of men'.

Neighbours described their fear after being 'startled' by the shots, which rung out shortly before 10pm on Monday.

Detectives from the force major incident team cordoned off the scene and spent several hours looking for clues.

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Resident Perwez Iqbal said: "I heard two or three loud bangs and saw a man running from the street and into a back alley nearby.

"I went outside and saw the police coming up the road.

"At the time I thought something serious must have happened.

"It was scary, I was very very worried about what was going on.

"I have never heard bangs like that in Accrington before, they were very, very strong.

"It was shocking, my heart was racing.

"There were more than five officers there and an ambulance was parked near my house."

Police said the woman, who was in the house and injured by flying glass, was not thought to be seriously hurt.

Extra patrols are being carried out in the area to reassure residents.

Detectives described the incident as 'isolated' and said they believed there was 'no threat to the wider public'.

Another neighbour said: "I thought the bangs were fireworks at first.

"I went outside and saw there were other people around and I became worried.

"No one knew what had happened and what was going on until the police arrived.

"I was quite scared. This isn't normal behaviour."

Cllr Munsif Dad, who represents the area on Hyndburn Council, said he had met with residents.

He said: "I hope the police can reassure residents that this area is a safe place for people to live in.

"This is an isolated incident and hopefully the police will get to the bottom of this as soon as possible.

"Whoever has done this needs to be found and be appropriately punished.

"I absolutely condemn this behaviour."

Det Ch Insp Joanne McHugh said: "Our investigation is underway and we would like to speak to anyone who could help.

"If you were in the area of Richmond Road around the time of this incident and you have any information then please get in touch with us.

"I would like to stress that we suspect this is linked to an on-going dispute between a group of men who are known to each other.

"We believe that there is no threat to the wider public, however we have stepped up patrols in the area to reassure residents."

  • Two men have been arrested in relation to the incident but they are still looking for help from members of the public.

Anyone with information should call police on 101 quoting incident reference 1491 of June 5.