Scores of
armed police in full body armour shut down an industrial estate in
Staffordshire yesterday after reports an illegal bare-knuckle boxing
match between gipsies had boiled over into a brawl at which guns,
knives, axes and baseball bats were wielded.
Firearms
officers, 18 police cars and a force helicopter were deployed as
trouble erupted after hundreds of travellers, who had come from Ireland
and around Britain, turned up to watch the underground fight.
Staffordshire
Police said they received calls from members of the public who said
gunfire was heard following the fight at Parkhouse Industrial Estate, in
Chesterton, north of Stoke-on-Trent.
Shots
were reported to have been fired between two vehicles following the
Fight Club-style boxing event shortly after midday, with claims
spectators turned up with baseball bats, axes and knives.
Police said a
'significant number of weapons' were seized in the post-fight raid, in
which officers cordoned off the site, and one woman was arrested.
Julie
Nelson, who works at APC Pick Up Services on the estate, told
MailOnline: 'A Range Rover came down the road at full pelt, followed by
two transit vans which people said had gipsies in them. They stopped in
the road and had a heated argument. They got out of their vans and were
arguing.
'There
was a police helicopter over the estate for about two hours. People
were quite worried, what with armed police and dogs around. It's not the
sort of thing you expect in Chesterton.'
Joe
Joyce, a 23-year-old Irish traveller, who went to Staffordshire
especially for the boxing match, said: 'We came to support one of the
fighters who won.
'It
was an organised event that attracted more than 400 people. It is
illegal and the police didn't know anything about it. They wouldn't have
let it happen if they had known.
'There
were no problems during the fight but an incident happened afterwards
and they made everyone leave. Let's just say 'bang bang'.'
Another
gipsy, Bryan Parker, 24, travelled from Ireland to Staffordshire and
was staying in the area for three days for the event.
He
said: 'We came here for the sport and to support one of the fighters.
It's a big event that almost 500 people went to. There's a gipsy camp
nearby but we stayed in a hotel. Something happened after the fight but I
can't talk about it.'
A
27-year-old woman, from Burnley, Lancashire, was arrested on suspicion
of possession of an offensive weapon and bailed pending further
enquires. All the weapons seized are now being forensically examined.
Inspector
Mark Barlow, from Newcastle Borough Local Policing Team, said: 'We are
investigating reports that a significant number of members of the
travelling community travelled to the our area, from a number of
locations outside Staffordshire, specifically for a planned illegal
fight between members of travelling family groups.
'This forms part of the ongoing investigation into the incident and we urge anyone with any information to come forward.
'We
are also investigating reports of dangerous driving and a number of
minor road traffic collisions on the A34, potentially involving vehicles
visiting the location, however none of the drivers involved have been
in contact with the police.'
A
worker from a joinery firm based on the industrial estate, who did not
want to be named, said: 'I had a call saying it was all kicking off down
at the business on Sunday afternoon.
'Obviously,
[my unit] was all locked up and the place is fairly secluded. But when I
got there, it was swarming with police and travellers. I couldn't
believe my eyes, I've never seen that many police in one place.'
The worker
added: 'People were saying shots had been fired between two vehicles and
there were a few scuffles that broke out as far I could see. It got
really ugly after the fight, tensions were high and there was a lot of
people obviously armed to the teeth.
'I
saw police bagging up a few weapons but I couldn't tell what they were.
By the sound of the one's they found it's lucky nobody was hurt or
killed.'
Police
said they carried out a detailed search of those present and their
vehicles and a significant number of weapons were recovered. The area
was cordoned off to ensure the public's safety.
Officers
were also given additional search powers, under Section 60 of the
Public Order Act, to aid their work because of the potential threat of
violence.
A
force spokesman said: 'Police were first called by members of the
public concerned about the way in which certain vehicles were being
driven on the A34 near Parkhouse. The witnesses reported seeing weapons
such as baseball bats and bladed weapons.
'Due
to the information received armed officers were deployed, along with
the force helicopter and dog support, to an area in the Parkhouse
Industrial Estate after receiving reports of disorder at the location.
'Although
the exact details of what has happened are under investigation, we can
confirm there has been an incident involving a group of travellers. At
this time there are no reported injuries and it is unclear if shots had
been fired.'
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