Zoom Image

City council workers clear the rubble in the immediate vicinity of a car set on fire during the Cardiff riots

Photo: Pa / dpa

After a traffic accident in which a 15-year-old and a 16-year-old died, riots broke out in Cardiff. The police in the Welsh capital are in need of explanation. After initially giving the impression that there had been no interaction between the police and the victims, the video from a surveillance camera cast doubt on this account.

Already on Tuesday night, riots broke out in the residential area in the west of Cardiff. According to media reports, stones and fireworks were thrown at the officers. Videos circulating on the internet showed police officers in protective gear trying to control a crowd. Several cars were set on fire.

The riots lasted until the early hours of the morning, several people were arrested. As a police spokesman announced on Tuesday, 15 officers were injured, 11 of whom had to be taken to hospital.

The unrest was triggered by an alleged involvement of the police in the accident, as the Commissioner for Police and Crime Prevention in the south of Wales, Alun Michael, told the radio station BBC 4. According to him, rumors spread that the accident, in which a 15-year-old and a 16-year-old boy died, occurred after a police chase. However, he dismissed this as unfounded. "I think it shows the speed at which rumours can spread through social media activity today – and that events can get out of control," Michael continued.

But when video from a surveillance camera later surfaced, showing a police van following an e-bike with two people at high speed, doubts arose about this account. The police spokesman said the video would help reconstruct the circumstances of the accident. He emphasized that at the time of the accident there were no other vehicles on the road with the e-bike. Police officers who were in the vicinity had only arrived at the scene of the accident when the accident had already occurred. According to initial findings, no other vehicle was involved. The independent police supervisory authority was called in to investigate what happened.

In an earlier statement, the police had strongly condemned the riots. "The level of violence against rescue workers and damage to property and vehicles was completely unacceptable," a police official said. The focus is now on determining the circumstances of the accident and the events that followed.

KIM/DPA