Residents in Walthamstow, north-east London, are reeling after a second wave of red paint vandalism struck their homes. The attacks, which involve red paint splattered on front doors and the word 'brothel' daubed alongside numbers, have also been reported in Huddersfield, Bradford, Reading, and several London boroughs over the past 18 months.
Local residents in Chingford Road and Cazenove Road said they received an anonymous letter claiming a nearby house was a brothel, but insisted there was no evidence to support this. An elderly couple whose home was targeted said: 'It’s really distressing, especially after it only happened the other week as well and we’ve been up overnight looking out the window.'
The Metropolitan Police stated they are investigating the incidents and trying to establish if there is a link to other attacks across the country. No arrests have been made. Stella Creasy, MP for Walthamstow, expressed concern that there is no central coordination to investigate these attacks, leaving residents without timely support.
One victim, Hannah, whose home on Chingford Road was covered in red paint, said: 'I’m also not sure how to explain it to my son. It’s costly but it’s also a worry. What are we supposed to do if it happens again after we clean it all off?'
Online debates have generated theories ranging from gang activity to the Gaza conflict, but police have not confirmed any motive. In November, police in Bradford ruled out a link between two similar attacks on apartment blocks, while in West Hampstead, police said repeated paint attacks were not antisemitic hate crimes.
