Man arrested at Heathrow after number of people believed to be pepper sprayed News A man has been arrested after a number of people were allegedly attacked with “a form of pepper spray” at a multi-storey car park at Heathrow Airport. The Metropolitan Police said armed officers were called to the car park at Terminal Three at approximately 08:11 am on Sunday morning to reports of multiple people being [...]
Uplift in patrols: West End businesses fund major Christmas crime crackdown Retail The largest single private-sector investment in enhanced security and policing in London’s West End was launched, involving over 600 businesses in the busy section of the capital. Operation West End, an initiative from the New West End Company, which represents over 600 West End businesses, including on Oxford Street, Regent Street and Bond Street, works [...]
Banned China tech firms lobbied for London embassy Politics Chinese tech firms banned on national security grounds in both the UK and the United States lobbied for Beijing’s new embassy in London, growing fears it could be used as an overseas “spy centre”. State-controlled company ZTE Mobile, which was deemed by GCHQ to pose a risk to British telecommunications infrastructure that “cannot be mitigated”, [...]
Asylum seeker released in error seen in London area, police say October 25, 2025 An asylum seeker accidentally released from prison was last seen in the London area, police said, as officers urged anyone who spots him to call 999 immediately. Ethiopian national Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, who had been living at the Bell Hotel in Epping, was jailed for 12 months in September for the sexual assault of [...]
Football and Robinson march force Met to call in 500 extra police September 13, 2025 Today’s football fixtures in London have contributed to 500 police officers from outside the capital beefing up the Metropolitan Police presence. Nine fixtures across the capital will take place today, including matches involving all seven Premier League teams. Over 1,500 offers in total will police the football matches, as well as a number of demonstrations [...]
Thieves go Wireless: Pickpockets eye headliner British festivals June 24, 2025 As UK festival season rolls around, new data reveals a less-celebrated chart-topper: phone theft. London’s biggest music events – including Wireless, BST Hyde Park, and Summertime Ball – have been ranked the worst in the country for festival pickpocketing, with theft rates more than five times the national average. The research, conducted by QR Code [...]
Spending Review: Khan slams lack of Met and infrastructure cash June 11, 2025 Sir Sadiq Khan has launched a scathing assessment of the Chancellor’s long-awaited Spending Review, warning it will strangle his ability to deliver new affordable homes and create jobs, and mean fewer police officers on the capital’s streets. In a statement released soon after Rachel Reeves concluded her speech, London’s newly-knighted mayor said he was “concerned” [...]
AI watchdog slams government over facial recognition rollout May 29, 2025 An artificial intelligence (AI) search body has criticised the UK government for accelerating the deployment of facial recognition technology without first establishing a comprehensive legal framework. The Ada Lovelace Institute has warned the increasing use of live facial recognition (LFR) by police and retailers across the UK is happening in a “legislative void”, raising urgent [...]
Three Iranian men charged with spying offences under National Security Act May 17, 2025 Three Iranian nationals living in London have been charged under the National Security Act with engaging in conduct likely to assist a foreign intelligence service, after an investigation led by counter-terrorism officers, the Metropolitan Police said. Mostafa Sepahvand, 39, of St John’s Wood, Farhad Javadi Manesh, 44, of Kensal Rise, and Shapoor Qalehali Khani Noori, [...]
UK police arrest seven Iranians in counter-terrorism probes May 4, 2025 Counter-terrorism police have arrested eight men, seven of whom are Iranian nationals, in two separate investigations, the Metropolitan Police said on Sunday. On Saturday, five men, four of whom are Iranian nationals between the ages of 29 and 40, were detained on suspicion of terrorism offences over a plot to target a specific premises. The [...]