Police Fear 'Linkup' Mob Chaos Could Spread Nationwide After Clapham and Birmingham Riots
There are growing fears that the mob chaos witnessed in Clapham will spread to other towns and cities across the United Kingdom. This follows incidents where feral youths ran riot in London and Birmingham during Easter holiday gatherings known as 'linkups'.
Clapham Common Descends Into Chaos
Over one hundred crazed teenagers descended upon Clapham Common basketball courts on Saturday and Tuesday, before swarming the high street where they looted shops, attacked police officers, and fought amongst themselves. After multiple shops were targeted on Saturday, including prominent retailers Marks and Spencer and Sainsbury's, police advised establishments on Clapham High Street to close early yesterday in anticipation of a second wave of violence.
Families were forced to barricade themselves inside shops or were quickly ushered out through backdoors as bored children, with nothing better to do during the half-term break, turned supermarkets into their personal playgrounds. Five teenage girls were arrested, and police issued dispersal orders across the two days of chaos, which originated from a social media trend encouraging youngsters to 'linkup' en masse.
Sinister Gatherings in Birmingham
A similar sinister gathering occurred in Birmingham on Friday as school children flocked to the city centre on the last day of term. Hooded youths were seen hurtling through the streets, fighting each other, and swarming shops and fast-food restaurants. Videos posted on social media showed teenagers being arrested in the street, highlighting the scale of the disorder.
TikTok videos and comments from individuals who attended suggest these 'linkups' are loosely pre-arranged via social media platforms. One comment on a video about the 'Clapham courts linkup' stated, 'I was gonna go but none of my friends wanted to go.' Another video shows two girls smiling and dancing at home, seemingly referencing the second 'linkup' with a caption reading: 'How we feel knowing it's gonna be live at Clapham Courts on Tuesday.'
Police Response and Public Safety Concerns
With teenagers across the country on half-term, there are now significant fears that viral clips of these three 'linkups' will inspire similar incidents to erupt in different cities and towns. The Metropolitan Police has warned that this is a real possibility. On Tuesday, police vehicles were seen desperately trying to navigate through throngs of rioters who took to the streets in broad daylight.
The force confirmed that two teenage girls were arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker, and a dispersal order was implemented. Marks and Spencer on the high street, which was looted by the flash mob over the weekend leading to two arrests, shut early amid fears of a further raid on its aisles.
A security guard working for the supermarket told the Daily Mail that he had to lock shoppers inside for a short period before gradually allowing them to be escorted out by officers. Mohammed explained: 'Police warned us there would be chaos so we prepared for it because of what happened last Saturday. There were loads of kids sprinting and shouting and police advised all the shops to close for one hour.'
He added that the supermarket decided to close for the day and not reopen, though some shoppers remained inside. 'Police knew roughly the time today,' he said. 'They said it would start at around 4pm so they were here since midday. But the chaos happened at 7pm. We had to lock shoppers in, at 8.15pm we let them out one by one with police and security holding the doors shut and escorting them out.'
Shoppers were reportedly very scared, with one lady with a pram and a baby described as terrified before being escorted to safety by police. Mohammed noted that the rioters targeted a branch of Boots, which was not as well prepared for the chaos as other shops.
Widespread Disruption and Damage
Meanwhile, a local Waitrose also closed its doors, sticking a 'police advised' closure notice onto its front door, and Boots was targeted 'very badly', according to witnesses. Further videos showed large groups of balaclava-clad youths gathering outside a McDonald's restaurant in the area as marked and unmarked police cars raced to the scene.
Families were reportedly 'barricaded' inside a local Sainsbury's as teenagers, many dressed in all black, claimed control of the busy high street. Both McDonald's and Sainsbury's were forced to shut before their scheduled time amid the mob disruption. By 10.30pm, the commotion had died down with police able to disperse a majority of the participants.
Employees at local shops said they were 'scared' as chaos reigned along the heaving road with cars coming to a standstill and commuters ducking for cover, or opting to film the scene using their smartphones. Fires were spotted burning on the fields of Clapham Common as police swooped in to extinguish them, sending smoke billowing into the air.
Attempts to Disperse the Crowd
Dozens of officers broke into the huge crowd of teens in a bid to disperse the mob, but most participants appeared to hold their ground. The riot raged on into the evening with around sixty teenagers facing off with police attempting to disperse participants. Officers arrived in four vehicles, including two vans, to separate a group gathering outside the Common's basketball courts, but many teens simply dashed past them while others shouted jibes at police as they walked past.
Lime bikes lay scattered across the ground and a stench of cannabis hung in the air as youths gathered into intimidatingly large groups both on the street and in the park. 'It felt like Notting Hill carnival,' the security guard said. 'I've only seen something similar happen during the carnival when I worked at the Notting Hill branch.'
An employee at Roosters Spot chicken shop stated: 'Police told us to shut our shop and after we reopened we were warned not to let any kids come in today. We were scared because we heard groups of 10 to 15 of them were coming into shops, running about, picking up trays and smashing stuff at walls.'
Official Police Statement
A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said: 'Police are responding to an ongoing incident on Clapham High Street following reports of a large crowd of young people causing anti-social behaviour. Officers are on the scene, and a dispersal order has been put in place, meaning anyone congregating must leave the area. At this time two teenage girls have been arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker. They have been taken to custody. Officers will remain in the area to offer support and respond to any concerns from local residents and businesses.'
Previous Incident and Social Media Influence
This comes after a mass 'linkup' that saw a wild mob of youths run riot in a Marks and Spencer store and terrorise the streets of Clapham on Saturday, which was arranged in advance online. Police were forced to issue a dispersal order, and two sixteen-year-old girls and one fifteen-year-old girl were arrested for shoplifting and assault during the crazed gathering of over one hundred teenagers.
Footage posted on social media showed police officers watching on as an army of feral youngsters stormed through the supermarket. Officers attempted to control the frenzied crowd as they shoved each other while running down the frozen food aisle before a brawl broke out that left one girl in tears. Other videos showed them running through the high street squealing and shouting as confused onlookers stood frozen in fear.
They also ambushed other shops in the area, including a Sainsbury's where a young girl was filmed hitting a police officer and another seen running out of the shop and away from officers. Videos and comments from teenagers who attended suggest the meet-up was arranged on social media, with many calling it 'the Clapham courts linkup' and others simply referring to it as 'Clapham courts' or 'courts'.
Rising Concerns for Public Safety
The chaotic scenes took place on the first day of the Easter holidays, raising concerns that this might happen again while Britain's youth is away from school. Footage showed Saturday's large gathering initially meeting up at Clapham Common netball and basketball courts before spilling out on to the streets as the atmosphere became increasingly chaotic.
A clip of the incident has since gone viral on social media, with viewers branding the ordeal yet another example of Lawless London. A Met Police spokesperson said of Saturday's mob incident: 'Tackling shoplifting and anti-social behaviour continues to be a priority for the Met, and we're doing more to take action against offenders and support local businesses. This proactive approach saw a 44 per cent increase in arrests last year, while shoplifting across London fell by four per cent. At around 16:45hrs on Saturday, 28 March, police responded to reports of a group of around 100 young people causing anti-social behaviour and stealing from a number of businesses on Clapham High Street. Officers imposed a dispersal order and made three arrests. Three girls, two aged 16 and one 15-year-old girl, were arrested for shoplifting and assault. They have since been bailed.'
