Chaos as feral youths clash with cops at UK city ‘Easter egg hunt’ | UK | News
Just days after similar scenes of unrest in Clapham High Street and Birmingham, chaos broke out in Milton Keynes after an “Easter egg hunt” turned into chaos. Dozens of young people descended on the center of Milton Keynes on Saturday evening, surrounding police vehicles and clashing with officers as crowds grew out of control.
The incident took place at around 19.15 on Saturday, April 4, near the town’s shopping area and The Point, where large groups had gathered following an event promoted on social media. Eyewitnesses described scenes of panic as shoppers were caught up in the chaos.
An eyewitness said the situation quickly escalated from a small group of 20 to 30 young people to a much larger crowd.
“More and more young people showed up and by 7.15 there were loads of them,” he told The Sun, describing how the atmosphere became volatile within minutes.
According to her account, the two teenage girls were escorted to a patrol car by officers before tensions flared further.
“The kids started flocking to the police car and even though the car tried to reverse, they stopped them from leaving,” he said.
Security personnel were reportedly unable to contain the crowd as some youths resisted attempts to disperse them. More than 10 police vehicles were dispatched to the scene after police teams had difficulty taking control.
Footage circulating on the internet shows police holding a young man to the ground while others scatter in different directions.
“Multiple children were trying to run into the police and officers had to push them back,” the witness added. “It was truly terrifying to witness.”
Thames Valley Police said the gathering was linked to an Easter event held in nearby Campbell Park, which was widely promoted online and attracted a large crowd earlier in the day.
A spokesman said officers initially monitored a “benign” incident but issued a dispersal order as behavior worsened.
“As numbers increased and crowd behavior changed, a Section 34 dispersal order for Central Milton Keynes was approved at 7.26pm,” police said.
“A small number of people were briefly detained to prevent further unrest. One person was arrested but later remanded.”
The order remained in effect until 8 a.m. the next morning. The unrest comes at a time of growing concern about so-called “social media hookups” in which large groups of young people coordinate mass gatherings online.
