Met seize knives after sawing through front door of alleged weapons smuggler

A suspected knife smuggler got a rude awakening after Met officers used an electric circular saw to cut through his front door during a dramatic dawn raid in south London.

Body-worn video footage captures the moment the door is busted down and more than a dozen officers swoop on the property on Wandsworth Road, Lambeth, at 05:09hrs on Tuesday, 25 August.

The warrant was executed after intelligence suggested illegal knives were being imported into the UK and allegedly linked to the address.

During a search of the property, officers recovered a box containing ten knives, including lock knives and flick knives.

Detectives allege the suspect is linked to the attempted importation of a significant number of knives from China, including zombie knives, which were intercepted by Border Force before they could reach the streets.

The investigation was subsequently taken on by detectives from the Met's Specialist Crime Command.

A man in his twenties was arrested on suspicion of importing prohibited weapons into the UK. He remains in custody while enquiries continue.

Detective Chief Inspector Kara Moulds, who led the Met's operation, said:

“These knives have no place on London's streets. They are specifically designed to inflict serious harm, which is why our officers are relentlessly targeting those suspected of bringing them into our communities.

“Every knife we seize is one less weapon that can be used to threaten, injure or kill. By taking them off the streets and bringing offenders to justice, we're making London safer for everyone."

These raids form part of the Met’s ongoing efforts to tackle knife crime and violence across the capital. Knife-enabled crime is down 5.9 per cent in the financial year to date, while knife-enabled robbery has fallen by 13.7 per cent over the same period.

In September 2024, zombie-style knives and machetes were added to the list of prohibited weapons in England and Wales. Zombie knives are weapons typically featuring a blade longer than eight inches and often include a serrated edge, spikes or multiple sharp points.

In 2025 the number of murders in London dropped to its lowest in more than a decade. The rate of violence in London is lower than many other big cities, both in the UK and across the US and major European cities like Paris, Berlin and Barcelona.

In May, officers arrested 243 people and seized 159 knives during a two-week London-wide crackdown on knife crime. Using intelligence to identify the highest-harm offenders, officers carried out targeted patrols, weapon sweeps, and stop and search activity to make arrests.

NOTES TO EDITOR

Video and images available here: https://mps.box.com/s/otmmz9s926svo43xx3s6q988ld9kd66v