[2] Hall's father and older brother were both serving lengthy prison sentences for drugs-related offences at the time of the incident.
[2] On Boxing Day, 26 December 2002, police officers located Hall's car, a Toyota Celica, parked on Marvin Street, Hackney, near the junction with Graham Road.
Hall spotted the contractor and threatened them from a window, brandishing a firearm, before firing at the police officers who confronted him.
On the third day of the incident, the police discovered that a second man was in the building after he phoned 999, claiming that Hall was holding him hostage.
At one point, he told the police negotiator that he had a "bathtub full of ammunition" and access to multiple firearms, and that he would not be taken alive.
A police sniper returned fire with a single shot, hitting Hall in the face and causing him to fall back, away from the window.
[8] Throughout the incident, residents in the affected street and immediately surrounding roads were confined to their homes for their own safety, except some vulnerable people who were evacuated.
Commander Bob Quick defended the approach, pointing out that the hostage was released unharmed and that the only casualty was Hall, who killed himself.
After dark, armed police officers climbed through a window and discovered Hall's burnt body in a hallway outside his flat, still clutching his handgun.
[12] In April and May 2003, the Tristan Bates Theatre in the West End hosted Come Out Eli, a play based on the events of the siege and local residents' experiences.