Hero lone policeman halts festival crowd riot

Met praises officer as rampaging man ‘pulls knife’ in Wireless charge

A LONE policeman was praised today for holding off a crowd of 150 gatecrashers as they attempted to batter their way into the Wireless festival.

The officer, armed only with a metal baton, fended off the group before festival security guards arrived. At one point, captured in a video posted on YouTube, a man pulls what appears to be a short knife from his shorts before he is held by a friend.

Senior officers hailed the bravery of the officer as the group tried to storm the 15ft security fence in Finsbury Park at about 6pm on Saturday, as rapper Childish Gambino performed.

A witness who filmed the incident said: “The officer was unbelievable. It looked like people were ready to start a riot and he showed no fear. He just bowled in there and dealt with it all single-handedly. He was cool and calm. It looked like a guy was going to get a knife out but he wasn’t scared. He just shouted at everyone to stay back, then security guards turned up to help.”

Footage of the incident, which went viral, shows people trying to scale the fence, prise it open and surge through before security staff force them back. Helen King, the Met’s assistant commissioner for territorial policing, urged people to nominate the officer, who has not been named, for a bravery award.

Haringey borough commander Victor Olisa said “I’d like to praise the officer and security team who managed to control the situation. I am aware of images that purport to show a man in possession of a knife. Enquiries are ongoing.” He said no arrests were made at the time but police were reviewing images of the incident. Hackney police se r ge an t Ri c h a rd Be r n t we et e d : “Putting safety of others before his own.” Surrey Chief Constable Lynne Owens added: “As ever, officers run towards trouble, even when alone.”

The three-day festival, which saw sets by Jessie J and Drake, was marred by trouble. Footage showed gatecrashers storming the fence on Friday. Crowds reportedly tried to surge in last night ahead of headline act David Guetta. The Met said 30 arrests were made at the event, for offences including knife possession and actual bodily harm.

A Wireless spokesman said: “There were a small number of incidents that were dealt with quickly where no one was hurt, on an otherwise hugely successful weekend. We work closely with ShowSec Security and police to ensure a secure environment.”@ what happened when the organisers lost contact with her somewhere between the Luton airport and Finsbury Park.

While they worked out if and when the 32-year-old might turn up, scheduled headliner David Guetta bored us to tears with his wearying formula of four-to-thefloor beats, rave synths and disembodied vocals. As challenging as a two-piece puzzle, tracks like Work Hard came accompanied with the compulsory command to “put your hands in the air”. Yawn.

Minaj finally appeared for Hey Mama, jolting the night into life. Feeling Myself was an ode to onanism, while on Only she invited us to “eat my ass like a cupcake” while one of her scantily clad dancers stroked her ample posterior. Subtlety may not be her strong suit but when she marries her more abrasive qualities to a soaring melody, as on Super Bass and set closer Starships, she’s utterly irresistible.

Better late than never, then, but Wireless has plenty of issues to iron out before it returns next year.