Reports Police being attacked as massive numbers of London black youths descend on Oxford Street.
Shocking video has shown police wielding batons clashing with dozens of youths in London’s Oxford Street this afternoon after chaos erupted when a social media-fuelled campaign to ‘rob JD Sports’ and shoplift went viral.
Nine people have been arrested by the Metropolitan Police on suspicion of offences including assaulting a police officer, going equipped to steal and breaching a dispersal order at the shopping hotspot today.
Police in Westminster had warned there would be heavy police presence in the area. In a Twitter post they said: “We are aware of online speculation about opportunities to commit crime around Oxford Street. There will be a significant number of our officers in the area over the next 24 hours.”
Some of those who had gathered said they were there out of curiosity. Harry, 14, from Islington, said: “I’m not here to steal anything, I’ve been raised better than that.”
Pointing to his phone he added: “I just want to record it.” He said he had heard about the event on Snapchat. Videos from earlier in the day showed cops simultaneously grappling with two youths, slamming one to the floor and pinning the other to the wall by McDonald’s. A third was later witnessed fleeing behind JD Sports before being detained. In dramatic scenes one cop appeared to be punched in the face by one youth.
Today’s chaos was triggered following a widely shared post over social media calling on thugs to ‘rob’ JD sports and other stores this afternoon. A poster plugging the carnage urged yobs to follow a ‘dress code’ of balaclavas and gloves. ‘Don’t come if you can’t run,’ it said before warning: ‘Don’t bring any weapons.’
Minutes later police chased another group of young men suspected of shoplifting, prompting another surge in young people keen to capture the scene on their phones. One man was searched by three officers as he lay on the pavement.
Puzzled older shoppers asked police officers what was going on. They were told it was a police operation to stop shoplifters. An officer was overheard saying the young men were released without charge after being searched.
The Metropolitan police in Westminster said it issued several dispersal orders. In a Twitter post it said: “Officers are continuing to provide a reassuring presence within the Oxford Street area. We have issued 24 dispersal orders and arrested five people.”
Just after 3pm two young men were seized by police who were guarding the area in anticipation of trouble. Both men were detained outside a McDonald’s, three doors east of JD Sports. One of the young men, wearing a green hoodie, was detained by four officers. The other in a grey tracksuit was held by three officers.
The incident prompted twitchy security guards at a number of nearby stores, who were on alert for a possible shoplifting spree, to lock their customers inside their stores for several minutes. They included Muji, an opticians, and Boots, which lowered its storefront metal shutters.
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