The first day of London’s annual Notting Hill Carnival saw at least 38 arrests, multiple knives seized, and a man stabbed, prompting police to enact stop and search powers.
Notting Hill Carnival, the two-day multicultural Afro-Caribbean street party dating back to the 1960s, once again experienced an outbreak of violence as the festivities began on Sunday.
At the time of this reporting, London’s Metropolitan Police said that they made 38 arrests and recovered four knives. In a statement, the police force said that a man believed to be in his 20s was stabbed, though thankfully his injuries are said to not be life-threatening.
“While the majority at today’s event have come to enjoy themselves, a number of people regrettably have not,” the Met said.
The British capital’s police force also announced that a Section 60 order has been put in place in the area until 2 am on Monday, granting officers stop and search powers in the designated zone to “prevent further violence”.
The two-day event, Europe’s largest street festival, will continue on Monday, with around one million expected to attend.
During the Carnival last year, there were 275 arrests, eight people stabbed, and around 80 police officers assaulted, including multiple officers who were sexually assaulted.
Ahead of the street party this weekend, retired Met detective chief inspector Mike Neville told The Telegraph that the Carnival represents the “ultimate in two-tier policing,” alleging that officers are afraid of making too many arrests for fear of being accused of racism.
“If the behaviour of the Notting Hill Carnival was replicated at football matches or any other event, it would be banned,” the former policeman said.
“You see people openly smoking drugs, abuse of police officers, dancing with female officers to the point of sexual assault. I challenge anybody to do the same thing on the way to a Millwall football game.”