Police make one arrest after Charlton retail park incident
Police arrested a 15 year old girl in Charlton last night after groups gathered in an apparent attempt to steal property from shops.
A large number of youths were filmed and believed to have targeted sportswear stores. Similar occurred at Eltham.
Some complaints have been made about a slow police response in Charlton. It could well be that police were tied up in Eltham. Officer numbers have been cut in recent years after heavy central Government cuts.
Alongside selling police stations to balance the books and avoid deeper cuts in officer numbers, the Met recently adopted a Basic Command Unit structure which merged officers from Bexley, Lewisham and Greenwich boroughs – and led to slower response times according to Bexley Council.
Police are looking for witnesses and can be contacted by calling 101. Dispersal orders are being introduced across the borough after similar events in Eltham.
