Shopkeepers bracing for TikTok-fuelled looting in Bexleyheath TODAY are told to lock their doors – as cops prepare to crackdown on thugs plotting to plunder stores
- A social media call was made for chaos at the Broadway Shopping Centre
Shopkeepers in Bexleyheath are bracing for further TikTok fuelled looting today with shopkeepers told to lock their doors.
The warning for the south-east London borough was issued by police last night after following a mass of messaging on social media called for troublemakers to plunder stores at Broadway Shopping Centre.
The predicted chaos comes just days after yobs gathered on Oxford Street on Wednesday after posts circulated on TikTok and Snapchat urged user to rob JD sports.
Nine people were arrested on Europe’s busiest shopping street while Scotland Yard issued 34 dispersal orders, banning the offenders from the area for 48 hours.
Footage of the disarray was spread widely online, leading to a cop clampdown in Essex after calls were made for a copycat invasion on the seaside resort, encouraging troublemakers to ‘get lit’ – slang for partying or getting intoxicated with drugs and alcohol.
The warning to Bexleyheath shopkeepers come after a mob tried to loot JD Sports on Oxford Street on Wednesday
Earlier this week Essex Police also had to put in place a 48 hour dispersal order followingcalls for chaos at Southend-on-Sea
The Metropolitan Police has issued a dispersal order for Welling and Bexleyheath Broadway this weekend amid threats of further anti-social behaviour
A letter from management at the Bexleyheath shopping centre told tenants extra security guards would be on duty today and the threat will be taken very seriously.
‘If you see any activity outside that concerns you then we would encourage you to close your doors until the trouble subsides,’ said the letter.
‘We are aware of social media speculation about an event advertised to take place in the Bexleyheath area.’
Scotland Yard confirmed that a section 35 dispersal order – giving officers the power to exclude people from a specific area – was in force.
The Met Police said the dispersal order for Bexleyheath, as well as Welling, came into effect from 4pm yesterday and will remain in place until 4pm on Sunday.
In a statement reported by News Shopper, the shopping centre added: ‘Many of you will have seen on social media the potential threat of stores being targeted by gangs of youths who intend to steal stock.
‘They are targeting specific towns and Bexleyheath has been listed for this coming Saturday 12th August.
‘Whilst this may come to nothing, we have chosen to take the treat seriously in order that we cover every eventually.
The chaos in Oxford Street on Wednesday was triggered by an online push to ‘rob JD Sports’
Police were seen wrestling young men to the ground in the Oxford Street area on Wednesday
There are fears of a repeat of scenes which saw chaos on Oxford Street earlier this week as youths clashed with police. Pictured: Police officers try to stop youths as they run out of a McDonald’s in Oxford Street
‘We will be increasing the number of guards within the shopping centre, ensuring that one is positioned at each main entrance.
‘If we see that there is any trouble outside we will shut all entrances until everything calms down.
‘For those who trade front facing on the Square, please be assured that extra police will be patrolling throughout the day and the BID is ordering extra private security personnel who will work alongside the police to keep everyone safe.
‘If you see any activity outside that concerns you then we would encourage you to close your doors until trouble subsides.’
The dramatic scenes on Oxford Street this week, as well as the attempted brawls in Essex, have raised concerns that US-style flashmob looting could become more commonplace in Britain, organised via social media apps.
Video footage of the brawl, shows youngsters clashing with cops wielding baton, who chased after them before arresting suspected troublemakers. Some stores were even forced to close their doors amid the mayhem.
Police in Southend issued a 48-hour dispersal order for parts of the city centre and seafront
A police car is parked on the Southend’s seafront today as officers clamp down on threats of anti-social behaviour
On Thursday Essex Police issue a dispersal order for 48 hours giving officers the power to tur away people and stop them gathering in an area around the Southend city centre and seafront.
Rumours were rife that some gang members had last week armed themselves with water pistols containing acid to spray rivals at the event, dubbed the Southend Motive on social media.
The planned ‘beach motive’ for Thursday was advertised on a flyer circulating on social media as ‘Southend Mo Pt.2’ with a cation saying ‘get lit’, although it added, ‘No violence, good vibes’.
Among those given a dispersal order by Essex Police officers yesterday was notorious TikTok prankster Mizzy, real name Bacari-Bronze O’Garro.
The 18-year-old, who has been arrested on multiple occasions over pranks including invading people’s homes, posted a video on social media of him being spoken to by a police officer in the sunshine outside the seafront’s theme park Adventure Island.
Mizzy told MailOnline yesterday that he had just been in the city to enjoy a trip to the beach – and was only spoken to because of a previous similar disturbance in the city on August 1, which saw a teenage girl arrested.
Mizzy said: ‘Me and my friends went to Southend just to chill on the beach in the sun. I ended up having a lot of people coming up to me which led to a big group of people screaming ‘Mizzy’.
A combination of rising lawlessness, the pandemic and online shoppers are to blame for the shocking demise of Oxford Street, experts have claimed
Aurora Wei (left), a post-graduate from Southampton visiting London for the first time, said that she does not feel safe on Oxford Street and holds her bags close to her
The troublemakers cowering behind a cloak of anonymity
By George Odling and Jacob Dirnhube
Often hiding behind anonymous avatars and rarely publishing their real names, social media troublemakers can be fiendishly difficult to find.
The phenomenon of advertising a store looting online appears to have originated in the US, where there was a spate of rapidly organised robberies that began in 2021.
In California that November, thieves used social media to organise two raids, including the luxury department store Nordstrom.
Kevin Wilk, the mayor of Walnut Creek near San Francisco, said at the time: ‘This was not a random gathering of dozens of people, but a planned, organised attack – organised retail robbery.’
The same month, three separate Best Buy stores in Minneapolis were targeted – also by a mob of strangers thought to have been brought together by social media.
Closer to home, a schoolboy from Basildon in Essex was instrumental in drumming up support for the Oxford Street attack – and subsequent chaos in Southend yesterday.
The 15-year-old boasted on his TikTok profile that he travelled for two hours on Wednesday to take part in the central London protest and ignored orders from a police officer to leave the area.
He previously helped to organise a similar event in Southend on August 1 which saw police dispersing a group of young people, including a teenage girl who was arrested. The teenage boy shared multiple posts about the planned action in Southend yesterday.
Among those spotted on Oxford Street on Wednesday and Southend yesterday was notorious TikTok prankster Mizzy, real name Bacari-Bronze O’Garro.
The 18-year-old, who has been arrested on multiple occasions over pranks including invading people’s homes, was filmed being spoken to by police officers and given dispersal orders on both occasions. But he has insisted he was not involved in the violence or organising any chaos.
‘As I was walking off, police came up to me and told me I had to leave.
‘They said there had been a dispersal order already in act and they were told by the sergeant to give me a personal dispersal order, meaning I can’t come back to Southend for the next 48 hours and have to leave the area within 20 minutes or I would get arrested.
‘I think it was because of an event that happened in Southend two weeks ago where there were a big group of youths who were causing antisocial behaviour.’
The TikTokker, who last week failed to appear before magistrates accused of breaching a court order, was also given a dispersal order by police at Oxford Street on Wednesday. He later released a video insisting he had not been involved in the chaotic scenes that day.
The disorder at Oxford Street comes as experts warn the area, once dubbed ‘the jewel in London’s shopping crown’, could be facing a slump as a result of rising crime, Covid and online shopping.
Retail pros told MailOnline the premier shopping site had fallen behind the likes of Regent Street and Carnaby Street and was facing demise without intervention from police who would crack down and crime, and retailers to fill empty shop fronts.
And after seeing the chaotic scenes on the street this week, worried shoppers revealed how the TikTok-style looting had left them nervous to visit.
Aurora Wei, a 24-year-old post-graduate from Southampton visiting London for the first time, told MailOnline on Oxford Street yesterday: ‘To be honest I don’t feel safe here which is why I gather my bags close to me. I heard that there’s a lot of thieves these days.
‘I saw all the chaos here the other day and of course [it affected me when thinking about coming down here]. I was quite worried [after seeing the video] which is why when I bought something I put it in my bag and not here [in my shopping bag].
‘I also heard from my friends that they have had very bad experiences here, saying it is quite dangerous. I know some people also drive their vehicles too fast too which is why I try to the side.’
Michael Kill, CEO of the Night Time Industry Association, told MailOnline: ‘Since the return from lockdowns and the pandemic we have seen considerable changes in consumer behaviour, without doubt anti social behaviour has had an impact on businesses across sectors operating both day and night.’
‘As we have seen in Oxford Street over the last few weeks, unlike night time economy businesses, retail environments do not have the required security infrastructure to deal with these issues.’
‘Ultimately the lawlessness experienced in the area will have an impact on customer footfall, and without a robust intervention from the Police, will see one of the world renowned retail areas reduced to empty shop fronts.’
Mr Kill added that the police must have a long-term strategic objective to stop these crimes as many businesses can’t afford to ‘cover the cost of policing the capital’s busiest retail street’.
MailOnline contacted the Met Police.
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