Officers are calling for information to help us identify a group of young people wielding machetes in Nottingham city centre in view of the public.
A member of the public called 999 after witnessing the incident near to the Council House in Old Market Square at approximately 6.15pm on Sunday (16 November).
Winter Wonderland is currently taking place in the city where hundreds of people are visiting daily.
It was reported that four youths on two e-bikes had confronted a group of other youths who were on foot, with two of the e-bike riders were in possession of machetes.
Officers were on scene within less than a minute of the call and an extensive search of the area was conducted by officers, with several people being searched but the suspects had left the area. No injuries were reported.
A thorough investigation is now underway to identify those responsible including an extensive CCTV search. Police have released images of a number of people they want to identify and are calling on the public’s help.
High-visibility reassurance patrols are continuing to take place in the area, as officers work to identify those involved.
Chief Superintendent Nick Waldram said:
“This type of despicable behaviour has absolutely no place in our city and rest assured we will leave no stone unturned until they are in our custody.
“We will use every power at our disposal to find them and throw the full force of the law at them. This incident happened in view of families with children.
“No one should have to go into the city and experience this shameful and dangerous behaviour. We have a team working on identifying those involved.
“However, we would urge anyone with information to come forward. Someone out there knows who they are. Do you know who these people are? Have you heard who might be involved?
“We are working every day to remove weapons from our streets and also to educate young people about the dangers of carrying them.
“This flies in the face of all the good work we are doing and damages our city’s reputation.
“Incidents such as the one on Sunday evening underscore just how important our work is and why it is such a high priority for Nottinghamshire Police.”
Anyone with information is asked to call 101 quoting incident 578 of 16 November 2025.
