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Police explain drug swab social post

The Metropolitan Police has issued an explanation for a video posted online on Sunday, which showed officers carrying out drug swabs on clubbers in Shoreditch.

The post, on the Met’s official Twitter account, led to many people demanding to know how they decided to test certain people for drugs, and whether the tactic was legal.

In a statement Scotland Yard said the tests were being carried out as a condition of entry at two licensed premises as part of a week of action “supporting women’s safety” between December 6 and 12.

“The upsurge in activity included safety patrols of the night time economy, as well as tackling unlicensed minicabs, and attending schools to speak to staff and students,” the statement said.

“Officers across the Met came together to work in areas which have seen a spike in incidents where women and girls have been made to feel unsafe or have been victims of crime, and we know there is an inextricable link between Class A drugs and serious crime and violence on the streets of London.

“Shoreditch has been a hotspot for these kinds of offences,” they said

Tanya Francis 4th January 2022

TagNews, LocationHackney