A MAJOR police investigation is underway after shots are thought to have been fired in a Huddersfield street.

But it is believed police only discovered cartridges on Whitestone Lane in Hillhouse 24 hours after they were originally called to deal with a disturbance there.

They returned to the area late yesterday afternoon following investigations. A detailed examination of the area by specialist forensics officers found the cartridges.

Police taped off an area at the junction of Croft Cottage Lane, Hillhouse Lane and Whitestone Lane.

The area was sealed off and thousands of people passing on the adjacent busy Bradford Road during the peak teatime period saw the police investigation.

A West Yorkshire Police spokeswoman said: We responded to reports of a disturbance on Whitestone Lane at 5pm on Tuesday.

When we got there we tried to establish what had happened.

After investigations we returned to the scene yesterday and have recovered a number of cartridges from the area.

Inquiries are now ongoing to establish how they got there.

Detectives from Huddersfield CID are keen to speak to anyone who saw the disturbance on Whitestone Lane on Tuesday or has any information about what caused it or who was involved. It is not thought anyone was hurt and no-one was arrested.

The forensics officers could be seen on their hands and knees yesterday as darkness fell carrying out a fingertip search of the area.

The heavy police presence included a scientific support van and a video van.

A police photographer illuminated the dark scene with a bright white light on the eight evidence markers.

Seven of the small yellow markers were on the street and one was on top of a stone wall.

The nearby Waggon and Horses pub remained open, but neither the regulars nor staff had seen or heard anything. None of the neighbours in houses had seen or heard anything either.

Several of them said that the first they knew of an incident was when police arrived.

One man at the bus stop on Bradford Road said he had seen a group of suspicious-looking people hanging around the junction the previous evening.

The roads were later reopened while a section of Croft Cottage Lane remained sealed off.

Contact Huddersfield detectives on 0845 6060606.