Photo shows armed police arrest youths after school children robbed in Romford

Four boys are seen on the ground

Dramatic photos have emerged of the moment armed police stopped a group of youths  in Romford town centre following reports of school children being robbed.

The image shows four people laying on the floor, one of them on crutches, while guns are pointed at them.

A Met Police spokesperson has confirmed two people were arrested after the incident in South Street this afternoon.

He said: “Police were called at 4.27pm on Wednesday, 13 November after a group of youths were reported to be robbing school children on South Street in Romford.

“Officers attended. Two youths were arrested on suspicion of robbery and taken into custody, where they remain.”

The image is believed to have been taken just after 5pm, and the spokesperson says it took time to locate the suspects.

Last year, a letter was sent to schools in Havering by local police advising children to avoid the town centre after school after a series of thefts.

That advice was later withdrawn, with police saying that it had been sent out in error and it was “disproportionate to the issues in the town centre, and people should not be alarmed.”