ARMED police swooped in Trowbridge this afternoon after receiving a call from someone who spotted what they thought was a firearm being bandied about in a coffee shop.

Officers launched a full scale operation, supported by the force helicopter, to respond to the report of an incident at the She's coffee lounge on Stallard Street, opposite Trowbridge station.

They surrounded the premises and burst in, initially handcuffing two men and making them lie on the floor.

The firearm turned out to be a wooden gun which a customer had had made and had taken in to show the coffee shop owner. Both men were quickly released by officers once they had established there was no crime in progress and no danger to the public.

A force spokesman said: "We received a call shortly after 3pm today reporting that a weapon had been seen in the Bythesea Road area. Armed response officers were deployed and a replica weapon was recovered.

"We take reports of this nature extremely seriously and will always respond appropriately.

"We encourage members of the public to act as our eyes and ears and if they see any suspicious activity, they are encouraged to report it to 101, or in an emergency call 999."