Man arrested over racially aggravated assault after Bexhill town centre attack

The 19-year-old was one of three to be arrested by police.

Officers were alerted to an altercation in Western Road by a police CCTV operator at 12.21am on Wednesday (September 3).

Police attended and met the victims on London Road at 12.33am.

The two men reported being assaulted by a group of three people in Western Road and then again in Town Hall Square.

Police said officers arrested two people at the scene – a 17-year-old boy on suspicion of two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and the 19-year-old man on suspicion of racially/religiously aggravated assault occasioning actual bodily harm and possession of a Class B drug.

Police said a third person – a 16-year-old boy – was later arrested on suspicion of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and common assault.

All three have been released on conditional bail until September 29 while enquiries continue.

Inspector Jonathan Hartley, of the Rother prevention team, said: “We have CCTV operators monitoring a number of busy areas in the town, and incidents like this prove how invaluable those eyes can be.

“The swift actions of the CCTV operator working closely with officers on the ground enabled us to respond to the disturbance quickly and with adequate resource, making sure our victims were supported and arrests were made within a short space of time.

“We still encourage people to contact police to report a crime. People should always call 999 in an emergency.”

Anyone who saw what happened or who has any other information about the incident is asked to contact police online or call 101 quoting serial 32 of 02/09.

Alternatively, they can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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