Police say any decision to use baton rounds against London rioters will not be taken lightly, as 16,000 officers take to streets
Riot police in Hackney on the third evening of violence in London. Photograph: Kerim Okten/EPA
Police will deploy baton rounds of plastic bullets against looters on Tuesday night if deemed necessary, a senior officer has said.
Firearms units carrying baton rounds were on the streets on Monday night but did not use them, said the Met deputy assistant commissioner Steven Kavanagh.
Any decision to use baton rounds would not be taken lightly, he said. "We are not going to throw away 180 years of policing with communities quickly. The repercussions and change to the way we police if we take the decision to use them will be long-lasting."
A 27-year-old man shot in Croydon during Monday night's rioting has died. Detectives are investigating whether he was killed when rioters fell out with each other over their stolen goods. Two men have been arrested on suspicion of handling stolen goods in connection with the incident.
A 60-year-old man is in a life-threatening condition after being attacked during rioting in Ealing. He fell to the ground and suffered a serious head injury.
"His condition is causing us some concern," said Commander Simon Foy, head of homicide and serious crime at the Met. He said between 450 and 500 detectives were being drafted in to the inquiry into the riots.
Officers are being taken off all other inquiries, including Weeting – into phone hacking – and anti-terrorism. Foy said he may also need to ask for detectives from other forces.
The inquiry team are trawling CCTV images and Foy said individuals would be pursued "vigorously and rigorously". "We will come and get you," he said. Some 550 people have been arrested and 100 charged so far.
About 16,000 officers will be on the streets on Tuesday evening to tackle any violence. Help is being sent from 26 forces, including those in Scotland. All leave has been cancelled, all training postponed and detectives as well as uniformed officers will be out on the streets and in communities.
Armoured vehicles were brought in for the first time on Monday night to tackle what senior officers say is the worst rioting and looting in living memory. More than 6,000 officers – including 2,500 mostly public order-trained officers and 3,500 local officers – were on duty as violence spread from north to east, west and south London.
Fires burned in Croydon, Clapham Junction and Hackney and there were disturbances in Liverpool, Birmingham and Bristol. The armoured vehicles – known as Jankels – were used in Clapham Junction where much of the worst looting and arson took place. The vehicles were driven on to Lavender Hill to push back a crowd of 150 looters who had smashed up Debenhams and other stores and businesses in the area. Jankels were also out in Hackney.
Their deployment brought echoes of Northern Ireland during the Troubles and marked the start of what sources say are much tougher tactics against rioters. But a police source said the use of water cannon was a decision for the government, not Scotland Yard.
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