Former footballer Dalian Atkinson has died after being shot with a Taser by police at his father’s house.

Police said the weapon was deployed at about 01:30 BST in Telford, Shropshire after officers were called to a report of concern for a man's safety.

A neighbour described seeing the former Aston Villa star, 48, being Tasered after “stumbling towards” police.

Mr Atkinson went into cardiac arrest on his way to hospital, where he was pronounced dead at about 03:00.

Paula Quinn, who lives in a first-floor flat near the Atkinson property in Trench, said: “They were shouting and kicking so much all I could hear were the boots hitting him.

“And then the officer who released the Taser stepped back while the other officer still continued to kick and then I could hear him shout to the other officer that was still kicking, ‘Back off, back off, back off.’

“And then the officer with the Taser asked the gentleman to put his hands behind his back and did so probably two or three times and reactivated the Taser another four or five times after that.”

The death has been referred to the police watchdog, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

It declined to comment on Ms Quinn's claims, but said the “the level and type of force used” was one of the elements of its investigation into police contact with Mr Atkinson before his death.

Ms Quinn was the only eyewitness spoken to by the BBC who reported seeing officers kick Mr Atkinson or use the Taser while he was on the ground.

She had earlier told the Shropshire Star Mr Atkinson had “seemed a bit, perhaps, inebriated”, adding: “As the Taser hit him in the stomach he just went ‘doof’, down like a lead balloon.”

Paramedics said Mr Atkinson went into cardiac arrest on his way to hospital.

His nephew, Fabian, said the former footballer was having dialysis treatment for kidney problems: “And obviously that’s inevitably why his heart was weaker.

“They need to, as soon as they deploy a Taser, they need to deploy an ambulance. As soon as, it should be mandatory.

“Because, how do they know, unnaturally putting volts through a body, how do they know they’re going to survive that, eventually, in the long run, that they’re not going to need any medical attention?”

Mr Atkinson is best remembered for scoring the Match of the Day goal of the season in the 1992-93 campaign – the inaugural Premier League season. Memorably, the Villa star dribbled the ball from inside his own half before chipping the Wimbledon keeper from the edge of the area.

•Excerpted from a BBC report. Photo shows killed ex-Premiership star Dalian Atkinson.

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