U.K. police are investigating the attempted kidnapping of a Chassidic Jewish man in Stamford Hill, a predominantly ultra-Orthodox area of north London, British media reported on Tuesday.
The incident reportedly took place this past Friday, mere hours before the onset of Shabbat.
Police said the victim “was walking on Moundfield Road, N16 when a car pulled up beside him and two males got out of the vehicle. The victim was approached by one of the males and allegedly told the victim to get into the boot of the car, shortly before driving off.”
The local branch of the neighborhood watch group Shomrim reported the incident. The group claimed that the incident “ended when the victim said he was calling the police and other vehicles approached.”
Police said that they were aware of a video recording shared by Shomrim and were working with the community to trace the suspects.
🚨#AttemptedKidnap#HateCrime #Antisemitism
— Shomrim (London North & East) (@Shomrim) April 28, 2024
👥 Jewish male threatened by 4 males who demanded he gets into the boot of their car!
🕵️♂️@Shomrim & @MetPoliceUK are appealing for info or sightings of a black VW T Cross EA24 VXF involved with the attempted Kidnap on Moundfield Road… pic.twitter.com/QguhkLPSRM
It comes amid a soaring number of antisemitic incidents in the United Kingdom—topping 4,000—since the Hamas attacks terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7. According to a report by the Community Security Trust, this is double the number of incidents that took place in the same period in 2022.
