Dispersal zone introduced on Liverpool Waterfront

We have introduced a Dispersal Zone on Liverpool Waterfront today (Monday 11 October) in response to reports of plans to commit criminal damage in the area during AOC Europe this week.
 
At around 10am this morning, we received a report that two people at the Pullman Hotel were in possession of items to be used for criminal damage.
 
Officers attended and arrested a 46-year-old woman from Liverpool and a 31-year-old man of no fixed address on suspicion of conspiracy to commit criminal damage.
 
They were taken into custody to be questioned by police.

The Dispersal Zone has been introduced to prevent acts of criminal damage and disruption from taking place in the area. It runs from today at 6.45pm until 6.44pm on Wednesday 13 October 2021. Officers will be in the area to provide a visible presence and deal with any incidents.

The Dispersal Order covers the area bounded by the map including the River Front, Mariners Wharf, Sefton Street, The Strand, Liver Street, Thomas Steers Way, The Strand, James Street, Castle Street, Dale Street, Exchange Street East, Chapel Street and St Nicholas Place.

The order comes under Section 34 of the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2014, which gives police officers and police community support traffic officers powers to direct people they suspect are causing or likely to cause crime, nuisance or anti-social behaviour to members of the public to leave a designated area and not return for up to 48 hours.

Under the legislation, officers have the power to seize any item used in the commission of anti-social behaviour.

If someone has previously been told to leave the area by an officer but then returns, an offence would be committed, which they may ultimately be arrested for.
 
Chief Superintendent Zoe Thornton said: “We have a duty to facilitate peaceful and lawful protest, but will not tolerate acts of criminality and – as in this case - will deal robustly with anyone whose behaviour is suspected to pose a threat to the safety of others.
 
“Our officers continue to ensure that disruption to residents, businesses and visitors is minimised and we will be working with partners to do all we can to achieve this.”

You can pass any information on criminal behaviour via our social media desk @MerPolCC on Twitter or 'Merseyside Police Contact Centre' on Facebook. You can also contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via their online form at: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/give-information.