Armed police breached the door of a south London home with a circular saw during a dawn raid Tuesday, arresting a man in his 20s on suspicion of importing prohibited weapons. The raid, which occurred shortly after 5 a.m. on Wandsworth Road in Lambeth, was the result of intelligence suggesting illegal knives were being imported into the UK and linked to the address.
Body-worn footage captured an officer cutting through the door before another officer rammed it open, allowing tactical teams to storm the property. Inside, officers discovered a box containing ten weapons, including lock knives and flick knives. The arrested suspect, who appeared surprised by the intervention, was taken into custody.
Metropolitan Police Detective Chief Inspector Kara Moulds stated that the suspect is linked to the attempted importation of a significant number of knives from China, including zombie knives, which Border Force intercepted before they could reach the streets. "These knives have no place on London's streets," Moulds said. "They are specifically designed to inflict serious harm, which is why our officers are relentlessly targeting those suspected of bringing them into our communities."
Images released by the police show a selection of the bladed weapons allegedly found at the property. The Metropolitan Police stated that the seizure is part of their ongoing efforts to combat knife crime and violence across the capital.
Zombie-style knives and machetes were classified as prohibited weapons in England and Wales in September 2024. These knives are typically characterized by blades longer than eight inches and often feature serrated edges, spikes, or multiple sharp points.
In a separate operation in May, the Met targeted individuals involved in knife crime, resulting in 243 arrests and the seizure of 159 knives. This operation, part of Operation Sceptre, employed a data-led approach to identify high-priority suspects and was directly responsible for 88 of the arrests. Over the past year, more than 3,000 weapons have been removed from London's streets.