Man arrested after boy shot in the head

Armed police cordoned off the street as paramedics carried the teenager, named locally as Louis Hole, 15, out on a stretcher.

Residents of Hawthorne Avenue, Newport, south Wales, were warned to keep inside as officers went on to arrest a 50-year-old man.

Gwent Police were called to the address in the Somerton area of the city at around 4.20pm on Tuesday.

A spokesman said: "A 50-year-old man from the Newport area has been arrested in connection with an incident that happened on Tuesday March 2 where a teenager suffered a gunshot wound in the Somerton area of Newport.

"Officers attended and found a 15-year-old boy alone in the house, who was taken to the Royal Gwent Hospital with a head injury.

"The boy has been transferred to the University Hospital of Wales, where he is described as being in a serious condition.

"The circumstances of how he received the wound remain unclear at this time.

"The 50-year-old man remains in police custody being questioned. Police are not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident at this time."

Yesterday neighbours named the family at the address as the boy's father Michael Hole, aged about 50, mother Edwina, and sister Leah, 10.

Irene Flage, 80, who lives next door, said they were very quiet, unassuming neighbours.

"They keep themselves to themselves. They are not the type of people who gossip, but they would say hello to you in the street," she said.

"They've only lived here about two years."

Residents of the semi-detached homes in Hawthorne Avenue all spoke of their shock.

One said: "I've lived here for 45 years and it has always been a very quiet area."