An alleged gang member told police he would call off a rave party scheduled on the same night as the recent London Bridge Terror attack, a committee has heard, saying to police: “You guys have had a bad enough day as it is”. 

The details came as members of the Safer Bromley Partnership were told police in south-west London have pinpointed gang-affiliated raves as a key concern of theirs.

Updating members, Metropolitan Police Superintendent Colin Carswell said raves related to gangs – specifically the ‘M20’ gang which is active in Bromley – had previously taken up precious police time and resources.

He said police received news that one of the M20 gang members was going to hold a rave on Friday, which officers were “really concerned” about.

He added the same gang member held one of the illegal events around Halloween earlier this year which “took a lot of resources” to shut down.

Police concerns weren’t helped when, on the Friday the rave was scheduled for, a terrorist attack occurred at London Bridge.

The attack, which saw two people tragically killed and the convicted terrorist perpetrator shot dead, saw police resources stretched to the limit as extra patrols were deployed.

While police managed to muster 12 officers in preparation for the Bromley rave, Supt Carswell said they were then told by the alleged host: “You guys have had a bad enough day as it is,” ahead of calling off the rave.

Supt Carswell said police were aware of another M20-linked man who wanted to continue hosting raves in the borough, specifically in Orpington.

It came as members were updated on the latest figures regarding gangs in the borough of Bromley, as well as the work being undertaken by various authorities to tackle them.

Members of the Safer Bromley group, which is made up of representatives of various community groups and services tasked with keeping residents in the borough safe, were told that at last count, 90 per cent of gang nominals were 25 years old or younger.

A council officer told the board that from September 16 to August 2018, 411 crimes had been flagged as “serious youth violence” – although this made up less than one per cent of the total offences in Bromley in that time.

Local investigations also highlighted the number of youths thought to be involved in so-called ‘county lines’ crime – the term used when drug gangs from big cities expand their operations to smaller towns, often utilising young children to avoid detection.

Committee members were told that from April to October this year, 28 young people in Bromley had confirmed links to county lines crime.

Thirteen of these were 17 years old or younger, with the youngest being 14.

The board were told that, in response to gang activity, case consultations with social workers had improved to help early identification of youths who could be at risk.In Bromley, all children and young people known to be gang affiliated or at risk of gang affiliation continue to be tracked through the multi-agency Missing, Exploitation and Gang Affiliation (MEGA) panel on a fortnightly basis.