A gunman shot dead by police after a five-hour stand-off in an luxury townhouse in Chelsea, West London, was named today as Mark Saunders, a 32-year-old Oxford-educated divorce lawyer.

Mr Saunders was shot dead by armed police in the house in Markham Square, just off the King's Road, after a siege which began shortly before 5pm when he started shooting out of the window.

He was thought to have been the first man shot by Met officers since Jean Charles de Menezes, the Brazilian electrician mistaken for a terrorist in July 2005.

Mr Saunders worked as a family law barrister at QEB Chambers, specialising in the division of property and other assets during divorce. Police are investigating reports that he had also served in Iraq. The gun found in the flat was a legally-held weapon, believed to be a shotgun.

He was a graduate of Christ Church, Oxford, and was called to the Bar in March 1999 since when he had won praise for his advocacy.

Mr Saunders was listed by the Chambers & Partners Guide to the Legal Profession, which described him as an up-and-coming barrister with "a maturity, unflappability and lack of hesitation in his addresses" which "puts one in mind of the hoariest proponents of the law".

A spokeswoman for QEB said: "We understand that a member of our team may have had some involvement in an incident in West London yesterday, but it’s really not for us to confirm. You will have to contact the police or IPCC."

The siege began when armed officers were called to reports of gunshots from a residential property at around 4.50pm yesterday. The gunman opened fire on them and police fired back.

Kings Road was closed and a number of shop workers and customers were forced to lock themselves in nearby buildings as the siege unfolded. A police negotiator was called in but shots were heard at the property again around 9pm and officers returned fire.

Shots were then exchanged again around half an hour later, and shortly afterwards emergency medical staff were seen being allowed into the cordoned-off area.

Jane Winkworth, a neighbour, said that Mr Saunders lived in the first-floor flat in the three-storey Markham Square property.

A Land Registry entry suggested that he bought it for £2.28 million in September last year and owned the property with Elizabeth Anne Saunders, who is believed to be his wife.

Mrs Winkworth, director of French Sole, a company which sells ballet shoes, was trapped in her basement home during the siege and told a friend that the gunman fired at her as she went into her garden to investigate the noise.

When armed officers arrived 10 minutes later they flooded in to her flat, where they remained. More shots were exchanged between the gunman and police at about 9.10pm before the final fatal confrontation at 9.30pm.

Eyewitnesses reported seeing green flashes, indicating police may have used stun grenades before entering the flat. Commander Ali Dizaei of the Metropolitan Police said that the gunman had made no demands.

Earlier there was speculation that the shooting was linked to a domestic dispute that escalated. A shopper on the Kings Road told Sky she had seen a woman crying and believed there was some kind of disagreement before the shooting.

"It seems that an argument started and it may have got out of hand," she said. The gunman had also fired shotgun pellets into the second floor bedroom of a house opposite. The homeowner was outside and came upstairs to see him re-loading the gun through the window.

She said last night: "It’s just very strange. I think it’s going to hit me tomorrow, I don’t know why someone was shooting at my house. I have no idea who he is, I’ve never seen him in my life."

A spokesman for the Independent Police Complaints Commission confirmed that the post-mortem examination was due to take place this afternoon.

A statement released today said: "The IPCC is independently investigating the fatal shooting of a 32-year-old man in Markham Square, London SW3, last night.

"The incident began just before 5pm when shots were heard. It would appear there were exchanges of fire during the course of the evening. The Metropolitan Police Service’s firearms officers entered a house in Markham Square and found the man. He was taken outside and given first aid and an ambulance called. The man was pronounced dead at the scene.

"The Metropolitan Police Service referred the incident to the IPCC immediately. Three IPCC nvestigators went to the scene which has been preserved. The post-mortem is expected to be conducted at Westminster mortuary this afternoon."

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