Officers from the East Area Proactive Team have today (24 August) arrested seven people in connection with a series of robberies across London.
Officers visited several addresses in London and Essex to locate the individuals, aged between 15 and 34. The males are suspected of committing a series of robberies, between Friday 4 November 2022 and Wednesday 25 January this year.
They worked across east London with offences taking place in Barking and Dagenham, Havering, Newham, Tower Hamlets and Hackney.
The group, largely made up of teenagers, targeted school-aged youths locally or on public transport. They would threaten their victims with violence, including knives, if they did not hand over their mobile phones, cash or designer clothes.
Detective Superintendent Richard Vandenbergh, from the East Area Command Unit which covers Havering and Barking and Dagenham said:
“Today’s arrests will play a significant role in disrupting crime in these areas, and across London as a whole. These criminals targeted young people for their belongings. They completely disregarded the impact their behaviour would have on their victims.
“While the robbery of items is inconvenient and troubling in itself, there is often a long lasting impact on the way a person lives their life day-to-day.
“We are incredibly pleased with today’s arrests and hope people across London notice a positive impact. We will continue to target criminals, remaining committed to investigating and stopping robbery and violent crime in our city.”
