Boy, 11, arrested in raids following riots after Southport stabbing

28 August 2024, 17:21 | Updated: 28 August 2024, 17:50

An 11-year-old boy has been arrested in police raids in connection with riots across the UK following stabbings in Southport in July.

He is thought to be the youngest person detained over the unrest earlier this month.

Unrest spread across the country following stabbings in Southport in which three young girls were killed.

The attack saw the knifeman enter the community centre on Hart Street, Southport, armed with a kitchen knife before attacking children and adults involved in the dance class.

Following the attacks, 17-year-old Axel Rudakubana was charged with three counts of murder and ten counts of attempted murder.

Police have vowed to catch anyone responsible for joining in the disorder earlier this month after strike teams carried out a series of raids on Teesside.

Cleveland Police have now arrested 110 people following the widespread trouble in Hartlepool and Middlesbrough, which was some of the worst seen in recent memory.

Read more: Hero dance teacher who shielded children in Southport attack is released from hospital after surgery

The force invited the media to accompany some of the 10 teams which set out from its Middlesbrough headquarters early on Wednesday to make arrests.

The teams arrested 14 people aged 11 to 43 during a series of raids.

This is the second time the force has held an 11-year-old over disorder.

A boy aged 11 was arrested on suspicion of arson on August 1 after a police car was set alight in Hartlepool during the disorder in the town.

After the raids were successfully completed, Detective Chief Inspector Sarah Robinson, in charge of the operation to catch the Middlesbrough disorder suspects, said: "The message is 'You haven't got away with it'.

"We can identify you and we will arrest you, you will be arrested and you will be put before the courts.

"Behind every crime there is a victim and some of the stories that we have been told have been really harrowing."

Read more: Nigel Farage refuses to apologise over claims made about Southport attacker being known to police

Before the teams set out, Superintendent Marc Anderson briefed them, saying: "I was Silver Commander on Sunday August 4 and never in my 30 years' service have I seen anything like that in Middlesbrough.

"What the community had to put up with that day was completely unacceptable."

He warned officers to take their personal safety seriously and to secure the addresses they were raiding, given that suspects will know the courts have handed out hefty sentences for disorder.

One strike team arrested two people - a man aged 23 and his 43-year-old mother - on suspicion of violent disorder, from an address in St Catherine's Court, Middlesbrough.

Neighbours looked on in shock as the officers banged on the suspects' door before they were led away, with the man covering his face with a hoodie.

The arrested woman yelled at the media to stop filming her as she was escorted to a police van.

The team then moved on to an address in Limerick Avenue, Stockton, Teesside, where a 25-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of violent disorder.

He swore at the media as he was filmed being led to the police van, calling reporters "muppets" and saying: "Go and get some proper news."

Youth Justice Board chairman says prosecuting children over riots should be 'last resort'