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Detectives investigating offences committed during demonstrations in Halifax have released CCTV images of ten people they would like to speak to in connection with the disorder.
Officers have been trawling though hours of CCTV footage from 9 July when the English Defence League protested in the town. On the day, there were around 450 English Defence League supporters in Calderdale and in the region of 70 counter demonstrators.
A dedicated police team has been collating hours of CCTV footage to seek out the minority responsible for the disorder in Calderdale.
Ten men are now wanted for public order offences and detectives believe they could be living in West or South Yorkshire, Humberside, Derby, Greater Manchester, Lancashire or Warwickshire, or as far a field as West Midlands, Nottingham, Leicester, Merseyside or West Mercia.
Anyone who recognises their faces should call police, specifying which CCTV image they are referring to. The images are numbered as suspects 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14.
Senior Investigating Officer Detective Superintendent Dave Pervin, of West Yorkshire Police's Homicide and Major Enquiry Team, said: “Like any large scale operation it is not always possible to tackle every single incident at the time and this is where our follow up enquiries begin.
“Subsequent enquiries have revealed that some individuals were seen to be committing offences and were captured on CCTV. “We now urge members of the public to take a close look at these photographs.
“Someone must know who they are and where they live and we ask them to ring us so this investigation can begin to draw to a close.” To date, six people have been arrested for various public order offences, including possession of an offensive weapon. All have now been dealt with either through the Magistrates Courts or by fixed penalty notices, or breach of bail.
Divisional Commander for Calderdale, Chf Supt Chris Hardern, said: “Our priority on the day was ensuring the safety of members of the public and we were able to achieve that. Our focus now remains firmly on those who attempted to disrupt that goal. “As we said at the very beginning of this operation, any criminal offences would be robustly dealt with.
“We will not stop until we have done all we can to catch those responsible for the disorder and we are doing all we can to bring these people to justice. “We ask for people to pick up the phone to tell us who they are.”
Anyone with any information about the whereabouts or identities of these men should call police on ‘101’, quoting suspect numbers or by emailing op.hawkshead@westyorkshire.pnn.police.uk People can also text ‘Halifax’, followed by the image suspect number and subsequent details to 07786 200805, or by calling Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.