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A BRAVE police officer who single-handedly disarmed a man carrying a Samurai sword as he walked along Finchley Road was given a round of applause by onlookers after he wrestled him to the ground.

 

The drama unfolded at the junction of Arkwright Road on Friday and saw PC John Dunwell, 33, in the thick of the action.

 

He told the New Journal: “I’ve just screamed at him: ‘Drop your sword. Just drop it.’ I don’t know if it was the shock of shouting at him, but he dropped the sword and a bag in his other hand. Then I told him to get on the ground and he started coming towards me. I thought I just needed to get him away from the sword so I put my forearm to his chest and drove him against a wall.”

 

PC Dunwell said the ensuing few moments as he struggled with the man proved the most difficult of the afternoon, as the man was “extremely strong” and it was all he could do to simply hold him against the wall.

 

In fact, it was only when his two colleagues, PC Derick Lant and PC Wioletta Hojdak, turned up did they get him to the ground. He was still too strong to overpower, and it took a third unit to secure him with hand and leg cuffs.

 

He was "unbelievably strong,” added PC Dunwell, who received a commendation last year after he was involved in a car crash with a suspect who then ran from the scene. On that occasion, the hero officer chased the man despite being injured and made an arrest.

 

PC Dunwell said of the Finchley Road swordman: “Every fibre in his body was being used to try and get away.

 

He said of that while he was not scared at the time, he did feel a bit “concerned” when he replayed events in his mind.

 

One of the biggest things on the day was the feeling of relief when my colleagues turned up and I wasn’t on my own anymore. I’m really grateful they got there so quick,” he said.

 

After closing the doors of the van with the man safely inside, PC Dunwell and his colleagues were cheered and applauded by onlookers.

"We don’t get invited to many parties or weddings – put it that way – so it’s a really nice to feel appreciated,” he said.

 

PC Dunwell suffered a pulled muscle in his back while colleagues received scrapes and bruising in the scuffle, but the suspect was unharmed. 

 

Refusing to accept the “hero” tag, he insisted while the team went back to the station and talked about the incident for some time, “at the end of the day its what we get paid to do and members of the public wouldn’t expect anything less”.  

 

He added: “It’s the first samurai sword I’ve seen, but it makes the day more interesting.”

 

The swordsman, who hasn’t been named, has been sectioned under the mental health act and an assessment of his ability to be interviewed will be reviewed next month.