Cleaver-wielding man arrested after ‘threatening to kill Jews’ in Clapton
In custody: CCTV footage showed the man brandishing the weapon. Photograph: @Shomrim
A man was arrested in Clapton yesterday following reports he threatened to kill young Jewish girls while armed with a meat cleaver and a knife.
The suspect, 61, is alleged to have barged into two kosher food stores on Upper Clapton Road before threatening a shopkeeper and yelling at nearby Jewish schoolgirls to “run away”.
BREAKING:Man with meat cleaver & large knife threatened a young Jewish girl in #UpperClapton “you Jews run away from here before I kill you” pic.twitter.com/ttpUtBTAyb
— Shomrim N.E. London (@Shomrim) May 9, 2017
Volunteer neighbourhood watch group Shomrim said it cordoned off an area on Rossington Street after witnesses reported seeing the man fleeing into a block of flats.
As the incident unfolded, Hackney Police took to Twitter to urge locals to “assist officers by allowing them to resolve the incident” without distractions.
Officers dealing with incident Rossington Street E5. Please assist officers by allowing them to resolve the incident & not distracting.
— Hackney Police (@MPSHackney) May 9, 2017
The suspect was later arrested by armed police on suspicion of affray and possession of an offensive weapon.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman confirmed that a 61-year-old man remains in custody at a north London police station and that no-one was reported injured.
Gideon Falter, chairman of the Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “This is an extremely frightening incident and it is very fortunate that there are no injuries reported. We commend Stamford Hill Shomrim and the Metropolitan Police Service for their bravery in rushing to the scene to protect the public.
“Violent antisemitic crime continues to rise at an alarming rate and will continue to do so until antisemitic incitement is taken seriously by the authorities before it translates into violence.”