Flying squad police swooped on a north London pawnbroker to foil a smash-and-grab – but the operation left two men, one of them an officer, in hospital.
The Met said a man used a concrete slab to break a window at the Mybond shop in Camden High Street at about 11.10am – but officers lying in wait stepped in and arrested the man on suspicion of conspiracy to rob. They tasered him during the struggle.
A second man trying to leave the scene on his moped hit a police officer, breaking his leg, before colliding with a wall and another shop window. Both the moped rider and the policeman are in hospital.
The rider has been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to rob.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">All go this morning. Raid in camden and flying squad caught the moped gang. About 20 police cars camden high street— Richard Stabler (@stablernator) <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/stablernator/status/580328945926610944" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-77846-https://twitter.com/stablernator/status/580328945926610944" data-vars-event-id="c23">March 24, 2015</a>
Police shut part of the high street during the operation, but it has now reopened, Transport for London confirmed.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">Photo: <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/pawnshop?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-77846-https://twitter.com/hashtag/pawnshop?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#pawnshop</a> has a <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/window?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-77846-https://twitter.com/hashtag/window?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#window</a> <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/smashed?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-77846-https://twitter.com/hashtag/smashed?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#smashed</a> in <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Camden?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-77846-https://twitter.com/hashtag/Camden?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#Camden</a>. <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Police?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-77846-https://twitter.com/hashtag/Police?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#Police</a> <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/crimescene?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-77846-https://twitter.com/hashtag/crimescene?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#crimescene</a> <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/iPhone5S?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-77846-https://twitter.com/hashtag/iPhone5S?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#iPhone5S</a> <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Londonlife?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-77846-https://twitter.com/hashtag/Londonlife?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#Londonlife</a> (at Camden... <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://www.awin1.com/awclick.php?mid=9&id=222025&p=http://t.co/A2sew0QLUR" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-77846-http://t.co/A2sew0QLUR" data-vars-event-id="c23">http://t.co/A2sew0QLUR</a>— Ming (@fatlittlebuddha) <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/fatlittlebuddha/status/580337950887714816" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-77846-https://twitter.com/fatlittlebuddha/status/580337950887714816" data-vars-event-id="c23">March 24, 2015</a>
The (Department for Work and Pensions, which runs the "ninohub" (National Insurance number hub) that was hit, said no one had been injured but confirmed a window had been "cracked".
A police spokesman said a man had "approached a pawnbroker and used a concrete slab to smash a window".
"He was arrested at the scene by officers from the flying squad on suspicion of conspiracy to rob," he added.
"During the course of his arrest, he was tasered. He did not require hospital treatment.
"A second suspect was at the location on a moped. He attempted to leave the scene and was in collision with an officer, he was subsequently in collision with a wall. The officer has been taken to hospital with a suspected broken leg. The suspect was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to rob and has been taken to hospital."
