Category: United Kingdom

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Officers investigating the death of a man are appealing for witnesses to come forward.

Ian Airlie, 48, was found dead at his home in Greenwich on Thursday, 10 October.

After his death, family informed police that Ian had reportedly been pushed down Waterloo Station’s Jubilee Line escalator at 17:05hrs on Sunday, 15 September.

Following his fall, Mr Airlie is believed to have spoken to security at the station. He relayed that he had fallen into a woman described as of south Asian appearance who also fell on the escalator. After disembarking the tube, Mr Airlie is then said to have spoken to a woman on a bus travelling from North Greenwich underground station. She handed him a tissue as he was bleeding from above his left eye.

Police are appealing to these people, as well as anyone else who saw the incident, to come forward.

At the time of the incident, Mr Airlie was wearing a black t-shirt and light grey jogging bottoms. On his back was a turquoise and grey Mountain Warehouse rucksack. He was carrying a medium, black suitcase.

Detective Inspector Chris Rogers, who is leading the investigation, said: “Mr Airlie’s death is tragic, and his family continue to mourn the loss of a loving son, partner, brother and uncle.

“We are determined to piece together the events, and give Mr Airlie’s family the answers they are searching for. You can assist us by coming forward with any information. However small it may seem to you, this could be the key we need to unlock the investigation.”

A post-mortem examination on Tuesday, 29 October 2024 was inconclusive and we await the result of further tests.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the police via 101, or anonymously through the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 1111 – quoting 01/942310/24.

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Detectives investigating an allegation of rape in Hackney are releasing an e-fit image of a man they need to identify.

An investigation is under way following the incident that happened between 16:00hrs and 17:00hrs on Wednesday, 2 October 2024 at Banister House in Homerton High Street.

It is alleged that a man forced a 13-year-old girl to get into his car on Banister Road West and took her to a block of flats where he raped her. She did not know him.

The girl continues to be supported by specialist officers.

Detective Superintendent Ralph Coates, who is leading the investigation, said:

“This is a very serious allegation and understandably it will cause concern in the local community. I want to offer reassurance our investigation continues at pace.

“We have been carrying out extensive enquiries including CCTV work and speaking at length to the victim who has undergone a horrific ordeal. We continue to support her.

“We now need the help of the public as part of our urgent enquiries to identify this man.

“The victim has helped us build an e-fit of the suspect – do you recognise this image? Do you have any information at all? We would urge you to come forward to help our investigation.”

The suspect, who is thought to be in his mid to late 30s, is believed to have left the scene in a white Audi.

Anyone with information is asked to call 101 quoting the reference 01/985614/24. If you believe you know who it is, please contact police, rather than approach him directly.

To remain anonymous contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Detectives investigating the death of a woman in Woolwich have named the victim as 43-year-old Marianne Kilonzi.

Officers attended a residential address in Argyll Road, SE18 at around 17:25hrs on Friday, 17 January following concerns for the welfare of the occupant.

Sadly, when they attended the property they found Marianne’s body. No arrests have been made at this time.

Detective Chief Inspector Suzanne Soren, from Specialist Crime South, who is leading the investigation said: “This is a tragic crime and our thoughts at this incredibly difficult time are with Marianne’s loved ones and colleagues. We are in contact with her family, who are being supported by specialist colleagues.

“I know this is a concerning time for the wider community and want to reassure the public that whilst we are in the early stages of this investigation, we believe the suspect was known to Marianne and there is no wider risk to the public.

“This is a fast-paced investigation and I would urge anyone with any information to come forward. Please call 101 quoting CAD 5231/17Jan or to report anonymously you can contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”

Formal identification has now taken place.

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

On Monday, 20 January, Stand Up to Racism and other associated groups are holding a protest in Whitehall.

The Met has engaged with the organisers and protestors will hold a static protest in Richmond Terrace, SW1A.

Conditions under Section 14 of the Public Order Act 1986 directing the protest to take place at this location have been imposed. This is to prevent serious disruption to the local community and transport networks.

We expect the group to form between 17:00hrs and 19:00hrs before dispersing.

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

A murder investigation has been launched following the death of a woman in south east London.

Police were called to a flat in Argyll Road SE18 at around 17.25hrs on Friday, 17 January following concerns for the welfare of the occupant.

Officers gained entry to the property and found a woman, aged 43, who was sadly deceased.

Next of kin has been informed, however we await formal identification.

A post mortem held on Saturday, 18 January gave cause of death as blunt force trauma and head injury.

DCI Suzanne Soren, Specialist Crime South, said: “This is a deeply tragic incident and are thoughts are very much with the victim’s family who are being supported by specialist officers. At this early stage we believe the suspect was known to the victim and we are carrying out urgent enquiries to trace a named individual.”

+ Anyone with information which could assist the investigation is asked to call 101 quoting ref: CAD 5231/17Jan.

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Following a breach of Public Order Act conditions at the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) march yesterday, nine people have been charged.

Conditions were put in place after taking into account the cumulative impact of the prolonged period of protest on Jewish Londoners, particularly when protests are in the vicinity of synagogues often on Saturdays, the Jewish holy day.

Officers saw a coordinated effort to breach these conditions which prevented protestors forming up in the vicinity of a synagogue located a short distance from Portland Place. This is despite the PSC agreeing to a static protest and numerous updates from the Met to protestors prior to the march and on the day.

Those charged with public order offences include:

• Angela Zelter, 73 (05.06.51), of Heyton, Powes
• Tessa Roe-Stanton, 20 (03.02.04), of Breakspears Road SE4
• Monday Rosenfeld, 21 (22.01.03), of Rhodeswell Road E14
• Starr Thomas, 20 (03.08.04), of Breakspears Road SE4
• Christian Adair, 23 (22.10.01), of Adelaide Avenue SE4
• Matthew Brennan, 44 (19.04.80), of Church Road, St George, Bristol
• David Ok, 40 (01.09.84), of Teighnmouth Road NW2
• Piers Corbyn, 77 (10.03.47), of East Street SE17
• Christopher Nineham, 62 (10.06.62) of Daling Way E3

They are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in the coming days.

In addition, three men have agreed to attend voluntarily at a Central London Police Station today to be interviewed under criminal caution as officers investigate a coordinated effort by organisers to breach conditions. The 75-year-old, 73-year-old and 61-year-old will be interviewed by officers this afternoon.

Following the arrests yesterday, 25 people have been bailed and 48 remain in custody.

Commander Adam Slonecki, who led the policing operation, said: “Yesterday we saw a deliberate effort, including by protest organisers, to breach conditions and attempt to march out of Whitehall.

“This was a serious escalation in criminality and one which we are taking incredibly seriously. Officers have worked around the clock to pursue those involved.

“We will continue to work through CCTV footage, videos from social media and our body worn cameras so we can make further arrests and bring forward charges where we identify criminality.

“I’d like to thank officers for their professional response, including those from other forces across the country who assisted. Thankfully no officers were injured during the protest, however three were spat at and one was physically assaulted. They are receiving appropriate support.”

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Following a breach of Public Order Act conditions at the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) march yesterday, ten people have been charged.

Conditions were put in place after taking into account the cumulative impact of the prolonged period of protest on Jewish Londoners, particularly when protests are in the vicinity of synagogues often on Saturdays, the Jewish holy day.

Officers saw a coordinated effort to breach these conditions which prevented protestors forming up in the vicinity of a synagogue located a short distance from Portland Place. This is despite the PSC agreeing to a static protest and numerous updates from the Met to protestors prior to the march and on the day.

Those charged with public order offences include:

• Angela Zelter, 73 (05.06.51), of Heyton, Powes
• Tessa Roe-Stanton, 20 (03.02.04), of Breakspears Road SE4
• Monday Rosenfeld, 21 (22.01.03), of Rhodeswell Road E14
• Starr Thomas, 20 (03.08.04), of Breakspears Road SE4
• Colin Weedon, 78 (07.08.46), of Richborne Terrace SW8
• Christian Adair, 23 (22.10.01), of Adelaide Avenue SE4
• Matthew Brennan, 44 (19.04.80), of Church Road, St George, Bristol
• David Ok, 40 (01.09.84), of Teighnmouth Road NW2
• Piers Corbyn, 77 (10.03.47), of East Street SE17
• Christopher Nineham, 62 (10.06.62) of Daling Way E3

They are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in the coming days.

In addition, three men have agreed to attend voluntarily at a Central London Police Station today to be interviewed under criminal caution as officers investigate a coordinated effort by organisers to breach conditions. The 75-year-old, 73-year-old and 61-year-old will be interviewed by officers this afternoon.

Following the arrests yesterday, 24 people have been bailed and 48 remain in custody.

Commander Adam Slonecki, who led the policing operation, said: “Yesterday we saw a deliberate effort, including by protest organisers, to breach conditions and attempt to march out of Whitehall.

“This was a serious escalation in criminality and one which we are taking incredibly seriously. Officers have worked around the clock to pursue those involved.

“We will continue to work through CCTV footage, videos from social media and our body worn cameras so we can make further arrests and bring forward charges where we identify criminality.

“I’d like to thank officers for their professional response, including those from other forces across the country who assisted. Thankfully no officers were injured during the protest, however three were spat at and one was physically assaulted. They are receiving appropriate support.”

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Officers have arrested 77 people during a Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) protest that saw a coordinated effort to breach Public Order Act conditions and cause serious disruption to Londoners.

Discussions between the officers and the PSC had been ongoing for many weeks in the run up to the protest.

Conditions were first imposed last week preventing protesters forming up in the vicinity of a synagogue located a short distance from Portland Place. Further conditions were then imposed earlier this week requiring protesters to form up in Russell Square and follow a specific route to Whitehall.

On Friday it was agreed with the PSC that they would not hold a march, instead remaining in Whitehall for a static protest. This was enforced by further conditions, with all previous conditions remaining in place.

Commander Adam Slonecki, who led the policing operation, said: “We have policed more than 20 national protests organised by the PSC since October 2023.

“This is the highest number of arrests we have seen, in response to the most significant escalation in criminality.

“We could not have been clearer about the conditions in place. Protesters were to remain in Whitehall with no march towards the BBC.

“Our relationship with protest organisers has to be based on trust and good faith. If they say they will act responsibly and lawfully we need to be able to know those are genuine assurances.

“That is why it was so deeply disappointing to see a deliberate effort, involving organisers of the demonstration, to breach the conditions and attempt to march out of Whitehall.

“Officers responded bravely and decisively, ensuring they got no further than Trafalgar Square and certainly nowhere near their target.

“I am quite confident this was a coordinated breach with the intention being to reach the BBC at Portland Place in defiance of the conditions. There is video footage of one of the organisers clearly inciting the crowd to join a march and one of the organisations involved has released a statement this evening confirming as much.

“At the same time as the group was attempting to force its way past police lines, camera crews were seen arriving in Portland Place. It is unlikely that the timing was simply a coincidence.

“We are in possession of footage from officers’ body worn cameras, from CCTV and from social media. We know who was involved in leading the movement of so many people through police lines. Investigations are now underway and we will make every effort to bring prosecutions against those we identify.”

The demonstration in Whitehall began largely without incident. There were a number of arrests for public order offences, one for displaying a placard that suggested support for Hamas and Hezbollah and another for pairing a swastika with the Israeli flag.

One protester who entered the conditioned area around Portland Place and refused to leave was also arrested.

However, shortly after 15:00hrs a group that had been present at the north end of Whitehall for some time was joined by a much larger group likely numbering more than 1,000 people.

A line of police officers was breached with the groups making a beeline for the north west corner of Trafalgar Square where they were prevented from going further by another line of officers and two police vans.

At that point officers intervened to arrest one of the organisers of the demonstration who was leading the group from the front. He remains in custody.

Clear warnings were given and many people who had been involved chose to act responsibly, turning back and dispersing.

A persistent group intent on continuing to breach the conditions tried to leave Trafalgar Square by other routes but were ultimately contained by officers. More than 60 of that group were arrested.

Thankfully no officers were seriously injured during today’s protest, however three were spat at as they intervened earlier in the day to deal with an incident. They are receiving the necessary support.

A full breakdown of the arrests is below:

65 x breach of conditions

5 x public order offences

2 x obstructing police

1 x support for a proscribed organisation

1 x inciting racial hatred

1 x common assault

1 x assault on an emergency worker

1 x sexual assault

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Officers have arrested 77 people during a Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) protest that saw a coordinated effort to breach Public Order Act conditions and cause serious disruption to Londoners.

Discussions between the officers and the PSC had been ongoing for many weeks in the run up to the protest.

Conditions were first imposed last week preventing protesters forming up in the vicinity of a synagogue located a short distance from Portland Place. Further conditions were then imposed earlier this week requiring protesters to form up in Russell Square and follow a specific route to Whitehall.

On Friday it was agreed with the PSC that they would not hold a march, instead remaining in Whitehall for a static protest. This was enforced by further conditions, with all previous conditions remaining in place.

Commander Adam Slonecki, who led the policing operation, said: “We have policed more than 20 national protests organised by the PSC since October 2023.

“This is the highest number of arrests we have seen, in response to the most significant escalation in criminality.

“We could not have been clearer about the conditions in place. Protesters were to remain in Whitehall with no march towards the BBC.

“Our relationship with protest organisers has to be based on trust and good faith. If they say they will act responsibly and lawfully we need to be able to know those are genuine assurances.

“That is why it was so deeply disappointing to see a deliberate effort, involving organisers of the demonstration, to breach the conditions and attempt to march out of Whitehall.

“Officers responded bravely and decisively, ensuring they got no further than Trafalgar Square and certainly nowhere near their target.

“I am quite confident this was a coordinated breach with the intention being to reach the BBC at Portland Place in defiance of the conditions. There is video footage of one of the organisers clearly inciting the crowd to join a march and one of the organisations involved has released a statement this evening confirming as much.

“At the same time as the group was attempting to force its way past police lines, camera crews were seen arriving in Portland Place. It is unlikely that the timing was simply a coincidence.

“We are in possession of footage from officers’ body worn cameras, from CCTV and from social media. We know who was involved in leading the movement of so many people through police lines. Investigations are now underway and we will make every effort to bring prosecutions against those we identify.”

The demonstration in Whitehall began largely without incident. There were a number of arrests for public order offences, one for displaying a placard that suggested support for Hamas and Hezbollah and another for pairing a swastika with the Israeli flag.

One protester who entered the conditioned area around Portland Place and refused to leave was also arrested.

However, shortly after 15:00hrs a group that had been present at the north end of Whitehall for some time was joined by a much larger group likely numbering more than 1,000 people.

A line of police officers was breached with the groups making a beeline for the north west corner of Trafalgar Square where they were prevented from going further by another line of officers and two police vans.

At that point officers intervened to arrest one of the organisers of the demonstration who was leading the group from the front. He remains in custody.

Clear warnings were given and many people who had been involved chose to act responsibly, turning back and dispersing.

A persistent group intent on continuing to breach the conditions tried to leave Trafalgar Square by other routes but were ultimately contained by officers. More than 60 of that group were arrested.

Thankfully no officers were seriously injured during today’s protest, however three were spat at as they intervened earlier in the day to deal with an incident. They are receiving the necessary support.

A full breakdown of the arrests is below:

65 x breach of conditions

5 x public order offences

2 x obstructing police

1 x support for a proscribed organisation

1 x inciting racial hatred

1 x common assault

1 x assault on an emergency worker

1 x sexual assault

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Officers have charged four people with the murder of Michelle Sadio, following a fatal shooting in Brent on 14 December.

On Saturday, 18 January, Perry Allen-Thomas, 26 (24.06.1998) of Queenscourt, Wembley was charged with murder and two counts of attempted murder. He will appear at Willesden Magistrates Court this afternoon.

Two men were also charged with murder and two counts of attempted murder on Thursday, 16 January.

Amir Salem, 18 (07.03.2006) of Barnhill Road, Wembley and Shaquille Sutherland, 24 (02.02.2000) of Havenwood, Wembley appeared at Willesden Magistrates Court on Friday, 17 January. They have been remanded into custody until a hearing at 10:00hrs on Tuesday, 21 January at the Old Bailey.

Detective Chief Inspector Phil Clarke, who is leading this investigation, said:

“This investigation is progressing at pace and we are very grateful to the local community for their continued support in our endeavours to charge those responsible for Michelle’s murder.

“We would like to thank members of the public for sharing CCTV footage with us, which has proved to be vital evidence and extremely helpful to the investigation.”

On Wednesday, 15 January, detectives arrested five people in connection with the murder.

Two were charged as above; the other three arrested have been bailed pending further enquiries.

Previously, Tahjin Sommersal, 18 (27.05.06) of Lafone Avenue, Feltham was charged with murder, two counts of attempted murder and possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.

He appeared at the Old Bailey on Wednesday, 15 January.