London (July 15, 2017): Two teenagers, a 15-year-old and a 16-year-old, have been arrested as police launch a major investigation into a series of five acid attacks that took place in less than 90 minutes in east London on Thursday night.
The five attacks on Thursday night, which were reported to police over a 90-minute period, are the latest in a spike of incidents using corrosive liquids as weapons in robberies and gang-related violence in the British capital.
Police said at least four of the five attacks involved two males on a moped, and in at least two cases the attackers stole mopeds belonging to their victims. Another incident involved a robbery.
Four of the attacks happened in the eastern borough of Hackney, and one other in Islington, in the city’s north. All five victims were taken to hospital.
According to a report released by the Metropolitan Police Service in March, acid attacks are on the rise in London. In 2014, there were 166 filed incidents, rising to 261 in 2015, and 454 in 2016.
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