POLICE acted swiftly yesterday afternoon after receiving a report that a man armed with a kitchen knife had entered Falmouth Library.

Four officers and a dog handler were sent to the building and police later confirmed that a 59-year-old man from Falmouth had been arrested on suspicion of robbery.

An eye-witness, who was in the library with her two young children when the incident occurred, told the Packet: "There was an old lady with her husband, very distressed. I saw PC Andy Hocking carrying a blade and there was a man, who had a black hold-all, with him.

"The library staff were brilliant. They couldn't do enough for the lady concerned. I think it must have been quite scary for them all."

The woman, who did not wish to be named, added: "It looked like an ordinary kitchen knife, the type with a brown wooden handle. It was more like a steak knife.

"The elderly victim, who had semi-permed hair, and was wearing a green skirt and cream blouse, appeared to be in her eighties, I would guess. She was with her husband. She looked visibly shaken. I think we all would be.

"The police must have been very, very swift. They took a man out with handcuffs and put him in the back of the police van."

A member of staff at Falmouth Library, who did not wish to be named, said a man came into the building and made people aware that he had a knife.

"The incident occurred in the reference library section. He was just sitting down and the lady had been nearby and provided the opportunity. The lady called out to staff and was shocked.

"Another man came to the office and said there was a man with a knife. We called the police who attended very quickly. The police were very good.

"The man had a bag at the side of him which had the knife visible. He appeared to be just sitting there waiting for the police to come and they put handcuffs on him after they arrived. He had been talking to another man.

"We made sure that nobody else went near the area and there was no panic in the library. We just dealt with the situation."

She added Falmouth library would like to make it clear it is still a very safe place to visit and that this incident was a very unusual occurrence.