Moment hundreds of rioters shouting 'don't protect paedos' clash with police as they arrest man, 38, accused of sending sexual messages to a child
In shocking footage posted online, crowds clashed with officers last night in Havant, Hampshire, as armed police with riot shields took the 38-year-old into custody.
Chants of 'paedo' could be heard, while one woman shouted 'don't protect the f***ing paedos, protect the kids', as the police van left the scene.
Officers lined up and formed barricades around the man, with the rioters appearing to launch projectiles in their direction.
The group then surrounds the police van as it attempts to leave he area.
The disorder is believed to have erupted after a group of online vigilante paedo hunters confronted a man they accused of engaging in sexual communication with a child.
In a post on Facebook, the group said it has come to their attention that bricks were thrown during the incident.
A statement from the Child Online Safety Team said: 'We do not condone in anyway whatsoever violence or disorder.
'People who cause such issues when stings happen risk the police and government trying to shut groups down.
'If you see a sting taking place feel free to watch but it's come to my attention people throwing bricks towards the pred and they've ended up hitting police .
'This is totally unacceptable, anyone who has launched a missile be under no illusion if we have it recorded we will submit it and provide a statement and you will be dealt robustly.
'The sad thing is you'll probably get more of a sentence than the suspect himself
'Let us do what we need to do and stay out of it.'
Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary confirmed that investigations remain ongoing.
A police spokesperson said: 'Officers have arrested a 38-year-old man from Havant on suspicion of engaging in sexual communications with a child.
'The man, who was arrested in Middle Park Way in Havant this evening, remains in police custody at the current time.
'Enquiries are ongoing to establish the circumstances.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
12 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
One dead after train 'with dozens of passengers onboard' ploughed into van at level crossing before vehicle 'burst into flames'
A person has died after a train 'with dozens of passengers onboard' ploughed into a van on a level crossing at 'high speed' before the vehicle 'burst into flames'. The train is understood to have hit 'an obstruction on the track' at Lower Road in Teynham, Kent, at around 12.40pm today, according to Southeastern Railway. One eyewitness claimed that the train was travelling at 90mph when the collision occurred, with the van reportedly catching fire following the crash. While paramedics and emergency services attended, one person was sadly pronounced dead at the scene, British Transport Police have said. The force also confirmed that the circumstances surrounding the 'high speed' crash are not believed to be suspicious. One passenger allegedly onboard the train took to Facebook to report that they had seen the train 'just hit a van head on'. Southeastern Railway Services confirmed that a train was involved in a collision with a van at the level crossing earlier this afternoon and they were 'still waiting on confirmation of the severity of the incident'. In a statement, David Davidson, Chief Operating Officer for the service, added: 'We are working with the emergency services and the Rail Accident Investigation Branch following this incident. One passenger allegedly onboard the train took to Facebook to report that they had seen the train 'just hit a van head on' 'Passengers on the train involved have been transferred onto another train and taken to Sittingbourne for onward travel. 'We are working with RAIB to understand the cause of this incident and to work to reopen the line for customers as soon as possible.' South East Ambulance Service and Kent Fire & Rescue Service are also understood to have attended the scene. Disruption to travel between Canterbury East and London Victoria lasted until around with patrols still in attendance where they are assisting BTP officers. Replacement buses continue to run between Gillingham and Faversham, alongside Sittingbourne and Sheerness. Valid tickets are being accepted on Southerneastern high speed trains, Thameslink and Fast Track buses between Gravesend and Ebbsfleet. Passengers on the train quickly took to social media to alert Southeastern Railway of the hot conditions onboard earlier today. 'Any chance you can turn on the AC?' one passenger asked. 'It's getting boiling on this train'. Another wrote: 'Are passengers going to be let off the train? The train is getting very warm and passengers are feeling unwell.' Passengers on the train quickly took to social media to alert Southeastern Railway of the hot conditions onboard 'A plan is being worked on to allow passengers to exit as soon as possible,' Southeastern Railway replied. 'However, we don't have an exact time for when that will be.' Steve White, the Managing Director of Southeastern Railway, said: 'We are deeply saddened to confirm that the driver of the road vehicle involved in the collision with a train earlier today has tragically died. Our thoughts are with their family and loved ones at this incredibly difficult time. 'No one else was injured in the incident. 'We are working hard to reopen the line later this evening and expect to run a full service tomorrow. 'We are fully assisting the Rail Accident Investigation Branch with their investigation to understand exactly what happened. 'I'd like to thank the emergency services, our rail colleagues and the RAIB for their swift and professional response — and also our passengers, particularly those on the train involved and others affected by the disruption, for their patience and understanding.' Steve White, the Managing Director of Southeastern Railway, wrote on X: 'The @Se_Railway is closed near Teynham following a train hitting a van on a level crossing' On X earlier today, Mr White wrote: 'The @Se_Railway is closed near Teynham following a train hitting a van on a level crossing. 'Replacement buses are operating between Gillingham & Faversham and Sheerness & Sittingbourne. 'We are working with the emergency services.' A spokesperson for Kent Police confirmed that they were called at 12.43pm 'to a report of a collision involving a train and a van at a level crossing in Lower Road, Teynham'. They continued: 'Patrols are currently at the scene where they are assisting officers from the British Transport Police. 'South East Coast Ambulance Service and Kent Fire and Rescue Service also attended.' South East Coast Ambulance Service and Kent Fire and Rescue Service have been contacted for comment.
Daily Mail
20 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Urgent warning as man, 23, feared to have drowned while swimming with pals at lock and teenage boy's body recovered from Scottish river amid sweltering temperatures
A 23-year-old man is feared to have drowned in the River Thames after going for a dip with friends. A major search operation was launched for the missing swimmer last night, known only as William, when he disappeared from an Oxfordshire lock. The case is the latest in a series of water-related incidents after a 15-year-old boy died at the River Kelvin in Glasgow and a 63-year-old woman fell near Campsie Glen waterfall in Dunbartonshire. It is believed William and a group of friends had decided to cool off by jumping in the river but soon got into difficulties. Friends desperately dried to pull the young man out from the water but were unable to and emergency services were called to the scene. A spokesman for Thames Valley Police said today: 'Specialist teams are searching for a man who was reported to have entered the water last night at Buscot Lock, near Faringdon, Oxfordshire. 'A call was received by Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service at just after 9.10pm last night to reports that the 23-year-old man, William, had got into difficulty in the water in the River Thames. 'We immediately responded, with search and rescue teams attending the scene within minutes, including the National Police Air Service, specialist search teams (POLSA), search dogs and Oxfordshire Lowland Search & Rescue.' Temporary Chief Superintendent Lis Knight said: 'Searches have been underway for William since last night but despite these extensive and thorough searches of the water and the river banks, we have, as yet, not been able to locate him. 'Officers from our POLSA search team are continuing the search today. 'What we have been able to ascertain was that William was with a group of friends at Buscot Lock and entered the water yesterday before getting into difficulty. Friends have tried to retrieve him from the water but were unable to do so. 'William's next of kin are aware and are being offered support at this extremely distressing time and my thoughts are with them all. We will continue our search for William until we have located him.' On Scotland's second hottest day in two years, emergency services launched a rescue operation this week on the River Kelvin and later recovered a body of a 15-year-old boy. His death is understood to be accidental. A Police Scotland spokesman said: 'Emergency services attended and around 23:30 the body of a male was recovered from the water. 'Inquiries are ongoing, however, the death is not being treated as suspicious.' Hours earlier, a 63-year-old woman fell near Campsie Glen waterfall in East Dunbartonshire. Two fire engines and two water rescue teams were sent out but she died at the scene. Police Scotland said the death was not being treated as suspicious. A temperature of 32C has only been recorded on six previous occasions in Scotland since 1961. Earlier this month the body of a teenage boy was pulled from a river in Suffolk after he entered the water with friends. And a couple of weeks before that a 20-year-old son was found dead in the river Tees in County Durham having got into difficulty in the water. The air ambulance, mountain rescue crews, police helicopter, paramedics and fire crews all rushed to the rural village Darlington in a bid to rescue him. Drones and rescue dogs were also used in the search. But tragically, Durham Police later confirmed they had found a body. Many drowning deaths have involved everyday activities like walking or running near water, suggesting dozens of those who have lost their lives in water had not intended to enter it. Professor Mike Tipton, chairman of the National Water Safety Forum (NWSF), said: 'Each one of these fatalities represents a tragedy. 'Drowning can occur anywhere and to anyone, so I urge the public to learn about water safety and how to prevent themselves and others from drowning. 'A small amount of time devoted to drowning prevention could save many lives.' Prof Tipton has urged people to visit the NWST's online Respect the Water campaign for 'simple, life-saving advice' in the event of an emergency.
The Independent
26 minutes ago
- The Independent
It's beyond time to end the scandal of IPP
It comes to something when a senior member of a recent government – the former justice secretary, no less – describes actions by the state that were part of his remit as 'overbearing, unfair and almost totalitarian'. Yet this is how Alex Chalk KC, who held that office for 14 months in the government of Rishi Sunak, describes imprisonment for public protection (IPP) orders – which can keep someone in prison indefinitely after conviction for a relatively minor crime. Ousted from government by his party's defeat at the last election, and also from his parliamentary seat, Mr Chalk has returned to his legal practice. It is from this perch that he is now asking his successor, Shabana Mahmood, to consider new proposals – from the Howard League and a former lord chief justice, Lord Thomas – with a view to righting this now longstanding wrong. At The Independent, we make no apology for returning once again to the iniquity of IPP orders that go against so much of what should constitute any civilised judicial system. Two features stand out. There is the glaring disproportionality in so many cases between the crime and the punishment, with some prisoners having served almost 20 years (and still counting) for offences such as robbing someone of their mobile phone or laptop. This is not, by the way, to diminish such crimes, but to point up the disparity between the standard tariff for such a conviction and the actual time served by many of those still subject to IPP orders. The other feature is the cruelty of imposing a sentence that has no end, which has been described by the UN as psychological torture. With no prospect of a release date, more than 90 such prisoners have taken their own lives. Altogether, more than 2,500 are still languishing in jail on IPPs. This is in spite of these indefinite prison terms having been abolished in 2012, just seven years after they were introduced. The clear mistake then was not to have made the abolition retrospective. It applied only to new convictions, not to those already in jail, leaving the glaring injustice that one day could make a difference between someone left to serve what could become a lifetime sentence and someone convicted of a similar crime with a clear idea of the timetable for release or parole. The failure to make abolition of IPP orders retrospective has had consequences of its own. At least some of those still not released are now so damaged by their experience and will be so hard to rehabilitate that they could indeed present a danger to society if they were released. This is the very opposite of what a penal system should set out to achieve and amounts, in Mr Chalk's words, to nothing less than a failure on the part of the state. At which point, there is an obvious and not unreasonable question for the former justice secretary to answer. If the injustices and perverse effects of IPP orders were so apparent when he came to office – as they were – why did he not do something about it? Why did he not condemn the policy in the same terms as he is doing now and make the changes he is demanding be made by his successor? Part of his answer is that he did do something. He reduced from 10 to three the number of years that a released IPP prisoner was on licence and so subject to recall. That is not nothing, but it was nothing like enough. Two small pleas might also be made on his behalf in mitigation. As he says, there was 'not a single vote' in even the change in the licence period that he made, because of the general lack of public sympathy for prisoners. As he does not say – but is a sentiment with which the current government could well concur – a year can be too short a time in UK politics when it comes to getting anything done. The ponderous nature of the legislative process can be a minus as well as a plus. On the other hand, the size of the Labour government's majority and the years it still has to run mean it has time on its side. After more than a decade of political foot-dragging around IPP orders, however, there is no time to lose. The proposals from the Howard League and Lord Thomas show how this could be done, and offer sufficient safeguards for the public in terms of conditions for those who may be released and a new drive to rehabilitate those still considered a danger to society. At a time when other prisoners are being released ahead of schedule to free up scarce cell space, and the Exchequer needs every penny of saving it can get, it makes no sense at all to keep IPP prisoners inside any longer than the public's safety requires. As Alex Chalk says of the one reform he did make, this may not win a single vote, but it would be the right thing to do. Indeed it is – and the sooner it is done, the better.
