Police tell shoppers to throw away food from 3 London grocery stores after a man was arrested on suspicion of injecting items with an unknown substance

Police on Thursday urged shoppers to throw away food bought at three London grocery stores after a man was arrested on suspicion of injecting items using a needle.

London's Metropolitan Police said in a statement that officers were called to Fulham, west London, on Wednesday after a man was reported to be shouting abuse in the street.

The man was reported to have entered three supermarkets in the area — a Sainsbury's Local, a Tesco Express, and a Little Waitrose — and injected food items, police said.

The police said they were holding the man in custody on suspicion of contamination of goods with intention of causing public harm or anxiety.

The stores were closed while authorities investigated what happened, police added.

Processed meat and microwaveable items may be contaminated, according to the police.

The public should throw away any food they bought from the supermarkets as a precaution, police said.

Police said it's not clear what the syringes may have contained, or how many items may be contaminated. Authorities are investigating whether other businesses in the area were affected, police said.

Insider has reached out to the Metropolitan Police for comment and further details on the incident.

A customer who had just shopped in Little Waitrose told the BBC: "It is a bit worrying because I was buying milk at the time and the police were escorting everyone out. It was quite panicky because we didn't know what was going on."

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