Police have located a suspect and carried out a number of searches following a public order incident in Newport on Wednesday afternoon.
Officers were called to St James’ Street in the centre of town at around midday when disorder erupted outside McDonalds – a hotspot for anti social behaviour in recent months.
The situation took an unexpected turn when a Renault Clio stopped at the traffic lights on South Street. A passenger exited the vehicle, opened the boot and removed what is thought to be a weapon of types. A male then walked across the road towards a group of people.
The incident was captured on the dash cam of a vehicle waiting in traffic. This was uploaded to Facebook and has since been shared far and wide. Many who have seen the video have suggested the offensive weapon appears to be an extendable baton, similar to those used by the Police.
It has been confirmed today (Sunday) that Police are aware of the incident. Officers say that they have located a suspect, carried out searches and that the investigation continues.
UPDATE WEDNESDAY 17TH – Hampshire Constabulary say that no further action is to be taken against the individual.
A spokesperson has said:
“We have investigated the matter and spoken to the man in the footage. We have identified the item depicted in the footage and can confirm it is not an offensive weapon.
Article continues below this advertisement “No further criminal action will be taken in relation to this matter.”
This is a direct result of cuts to the Police force. Not only do you get an increase of disorder you get people feeling that they have to take the law in their own hands. When the police can not and will not investigate ‘minor’ crimes you get this kind of escalation.