Metropolitan Police officers investigating a series of filmed harassments in east London have arrested a fifth man today.
The investigation was launched following a number of linked incidents which occurred in East London over the course of the weekend of 12/13 of this month. A small group of individuals was observed approaching and harassing members of the public at various locations, on videos that had then been uploaded to YouTube. Four other arrests have already been made between Sunday and yesterday on suspicion of GBH and public order offences.
The police issued a specific appeal yesterday for a victim on one of the videos to make contact with them. The video was entitled 'Muslim vigilantes in London harass and taunt gay male'. It shows a small group verbally harassing and intimidating a man using homophobic language.
Detective Chief Inspector Wendy Morgan from Tower Hamlets Borough said: "The Met takes such homophobic behaviour very seriously. This man is a crucial witness in the investigation and would encourage him and anyone else with information relating to this incident to make contact in confidence as soon as possible."
Various other lines of enquiry are being pursued by the Community Safety Unit at Tower Hamlets in an attempt to identify and prosecute the individuals concerned.
Anyone with information relevant to the investigation is asked to contact police at [email protected] (for the attention of DI Cliff Jones, DS Chris Bagshaw, DC Stacey Yarker); or to report it to police via 101. If you wish to remain anonymous call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
