Clash In Cambridge As Riot Violence Spreads

There were arrests and injuries last night as police confronted a gang of youths heading for a Cambridge shopping centre.

alex mayer cambridgeshire police Grafton Centre john feavyour london riots looting midsummer common riots the grafton

Police tackled a gang of youths who were heading for The Grafton centre last night, as rioting and looting threatened to spread to Cambridge.

Cambridgeshire police were first alerted to the group of 30-40 young people at 11.35pm last night. Officers rushed into action, and were able to break the mob up within 20 minutes. Some of the young people were wearing facial coverings.

However, two police suffered injuries after the gang hurled rubbish at police near Midsummer Common. In total, five people were arrested for violent disorder, as the police splintered the group and prevented any attacks on the shopping centre.

The scenes in Cambridge last night were part of a spread of violence across the country, following the rioting and looting that shocked London earlier this week. Besides the capital, Birmingham and Manchester have been worst affected by the violence.

Rioting in London

Responding to the news, Cambridgeshire MEP Richard Howitt said: “I am deeply shocked. Like all peace loving Cambridge residents I am grateful to the police who deserve our full support and praise for getting a difficult situation under control.”

Cambridgeshire Deputy Constable John Feavyour was quick to condemn those involved, both in Cambridge and other areas. He said: “This type of criminal behaviour will not be tolerated and anyone who uses the emerging national issues as an excuse to break the law in the county will be dealt with swiftly and robustly.”

On Monday riot police from Cambridge were called to help in London, as violence in the city became out of control.

Before last night, Cambridge had managed to avoid any copycat violence and police patrols have been increased to try and maintain order across the county.