NI riots: Twenty-eight arrests over recent violence
Twenty-eight people have now been arrested over violence that erupted in Northern Ireland over the last week - and police have warned that there will be further arrests.In total, 64 police officers have been injured in disturbances which started last Monday after a peaceful protest over an alleged sexual assault in Ballymena, County Antrim, and later spread to other areas.In the latest round of arrests, five people have been detained in connection with disorder in Ballymena and Larne. A 40-year-old man, a 33-year-old woman and a 13 year-old girl have been charged in connection with the rioting in Ballymena.
Detectives investigating online posts relating to the disorder have charged a 32-year-old man with sending menacing messages through a public electronic communications network and encouraging or assisting offences.Meanwhile, a 25-year-old man has also been arrested in relation to an arson attack at Larne Leisure Centre last week.The centre had been providing emergency shelter for families following the clashes earlier this week, the council said.A 56-year-old woman has also appeared in court charged with obstructing a police officer during last week's riots.
What happened on Sunday night?
Police said there had been "sporadic disturbances" in different locations on Sunday night but described it as a "reduced level of disorder". Overnight graffiti in Bangor, County Down and on an unoccupied house in Chadwick Street in south Belfast are being treated as race-motivated hate crimes, the police said.In Brompton Park in Ardoyne, in Belfast, about 30 young people set a bin on fire but no damage was caused to shops and police said "no serious disorder ensued".Ass Ch Cons Melanie Jones said "Our heightened presence in our local communities and continued community engagement to de-escalate violence continued last night, thankfully, similar to Saturday, the situation was much calmer."Thankfully, none of our officers policing this disorder reported being injured on duty last night (Sunday)."Police have already circulated images of individuals they want to identify and interview.
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