UPDATED at 8.20PM on 24 November: A sixth teenager has been arrested in connection with violence that broke out at StarCity, as the investigation into last night’s disorder continues.
Five teenagers have been arrested after major disorder involving up to 100 youths at Star City on Saturday night. (23/11).
Two machetes were seized during the trouble, which saw pockets of fighting and seven police officers left with minor injuries as they dealt with the crowds in and around the cinema.
Dozens of officers were sent to the family entertainment complex after a 999 call just after 5.30pm reporting a group of youths with machetes.
Management at the cinema made the independent decision to close for the evening.
A dispersal order was issued which gave officers the power to move crowds on and arrest those who refused. By 9pm, the area was largely clear.
Those arrested are a girl aged 13, a girl and boy both aged 14 and a 19-year-old man.
They were all held on suspicion of assaulting police. In addition, a boy aged 14 was held on suspicion of obstructing police.
The officers hurt during the trouble had minor facial injuries. In addition to the machetes, a knife was recovered from a roundabout near to the venue. Officers are working to understand the reason for the trouble.
Supt Ian Green, from Birmingham police, said: “This was a major outbreak of trouble which left families who were just trying to enjoy a night out at the cinema understandably frightened.
“We worked quickly to move the crowds on, but were met with a very hostile response and officers had to draw Tasers to restore order.
“Thankfully, the injuries to our officers were very minor. We’ve also recovered two machetes and a knife, and it’s clear that some of those who went to Star City last night were intent on causing trouble.
“We’ve had a great response from the public who have been very supportive of our officers. We understand that families with young children will have been left upset by what they saw last night, but we urge people to appreciate that our aim last night was to protect the public and restore order, and that’s what we achieved.
“We’re aware of a number of images and videos circulating on social media which appear to show those involved in last night’s violence.
“We are assessing those and have already had a number of phone calls from members of the public giving us the names of people they believe were involved last night.
“I’d ask anyone with images or video who has not yet got in touch already to do so that we can make further arrests.”
You can get in touch with West Midlands Police on Live Chat via the WMP Website, by calling 101, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
