Police ‘too busy’ with mentally ill to fight crime

A London police branch said that they are too busy looking after mentally ill people to fight crime.

A tweet was sent from Lewisham Metropolitan Police’s account shortly before midnight on Wednesday. “So busy dealing with fallout from mental health issues and ‘missing’ people don’t have time to fight crime,” it read.

A Met spokesman said: “A tweet posted by @Mpslewisham at 23.56pm [sic] on Aug 30 was erroneous and did not reflect the values and work ethic of Lewisham borough or the MPS. Every call matters to us. Dealing with vulnerable people and attending calls related to mental health issues is a vital part of everyday policing.”