Gangs of youths clashed with police in Milton Keynes on Saturday after a social media Easter egg hunt turned chaotic, in the latest outbreak of teenage mob disorder to sweep England.
Crowds gathered in Campbell Park at around 4.15pm after the event, which had been widely promoted online and drew more people than expected.
Later in the afternoon, the gathering spilled into the town centre and Thames Valley police tried to break up the crowds.
By 7.15pm, large groups of teenagers swarmed a police car, preventing it from moving. Just over 10 minutes later, a dispersal order was put in place.
Social media footage showed officers grappling with young people outside Midsummer Place shopping centre, with one dragged to the ground as police told the crowd to move back.
One person was arrested but subsequently released. A small number of others were briefly detained.
The scenes follow two weekends of disorder in Clapham, where hundreds of teenagers looted shops and set fires after being gathered on group chats.
The chaos happened Clapham High Street where families and passersby were barricaded inside shops including M&S as hundreds of youths piled through after schools broke up for Easter.
The Easter event in Milton Keynes was advertised on social media by trainer reseller Stars Sneakers and clothing retailer Grind & Garms, which offered trainers and tracksuits as prizes.
A Thames Valley Police spokesperson said: ‘We received a report of a large group gathering in Campbell Park yesterday around 4.15pm, following an Easter Egg Hunt event being promoted on social media, which drew a large number of people.’
