The marksmen were seen brandishing a rifle and firing at the birds in the early hours of Monday morning just outside Royal Victoria Place.
An eyewitness said that two men wearing high visibility jackets were seen just before 1am using a rifle to kill pigeons roosting outside the delivery entrance to the shopping centre.
He said: “This was in the goods entrance late on a Sunday night, all the flood-lights were on.”
The man posted a video of the gunmen on Twitter.
It turned out the marksmen were licensed pest controllers hired by the shopping centre to conduct a pigeon cull.
A spokesman for the shopping centre confirmed that the men were contracted by them as part of normal procedures to keep pigeon numbers under control.
The pest controllers had informed the police of their activities.
A spokesman for Kent Police told the Times: “We were told at 11.55pm on Sunday July 30 that a pest control company would be operating in the area.
“We received another call at 2am to confirm they had finished.”
