18-year-old from Midhurst among those arrested in connection with Brighton kidnapping

Police received report of the kidnapping on Monday evening, triggering an immediate emergency response to locate and rescue the victim.

Following inquiries, a flat in Ditchling Road, Brighton was revealed as the offence location. Counter Terrorist Specialist Firearms Officers (CTSFOs) and other officers responded to the scene after 6pm on Tuesday and the victim, a 27-year-old local man, was recovered and taken to a place of safety.

A 20 year old of no fixed address was arrested alongside the 18-year-old at the scene on suspicion of kidnap. A third suspect ran from the address and made it to nearby Vere Road – a number of roof tiles were thrown, causing damage to several vehicles. The 25-year-old, also of no fixed address, was only arrested after a specialist negotiator was called. He was arrested on suspicion of kidnap, police said.

A four suspect, aged 27 of no fixed address, was also arrested at the address, but on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of class A drugs, police said.

All four men remain in police custody.

Superintendent Adele Tucknott, of Brighton Command, said: “After receiving a report of a kidnap, our priority was to safely recover the victim and detain any suspects. This involved a number of covert and overt tactics, including distraction devices. This will have resulted in a loud noise which we appreciate may have caused alarm to anyone in the area; no firearms were discharged.

“This is an ongoing investigation and I would urge anyone with any information about the incident to report it online or call 101, quoting Operation Bloomfield.

“I’d also like to thank the public for their patience and understanding while we dealt with the incident. The public can expect to see a heightened police presence in the area in the meantime.

“We are treating this as an isolated incident with no threat to the wider community.”

A section of Ditchling Road was temporarily closed while officers were in attendance, and was reopened later that evening.

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