22 Jun 2010

Melbourne police seal off cricket ground during hunt for gunman

5:39 am on 22 June 2010

Police in Melbourne are searching for a suspected gunman who forced the sealing off of the city's cricket ground and Olympic Park area after a high-speed car chase.

They believe the man has abandoned his vehicle and is now on foot. They have named him as 19-year-old David Paul Rowntree.

Police fear Rowntree, who had gone a crime spree while on parole, could try to end the hunt in a shootout.

The area is no longer cordoned off, and train and tram services shut down during the operation are returning to normal.

However, police officers are still patrolling the site and they are urging people who don't have urgent business in the precinct to stay away.

The hunt follows a high-speed chase along the Monash Freeway on Monday, during which two police cars were rammed and an officer was taken to hospital with back injuries.