We're selling up & leaving our once quaint town after topless yob's high street rampage turned it into a WARZONE

The Irish Sun

18-05-2025

THE crazed rampage of a shirtless yob has left a town centre reeling as CCTV footage shows the moment he smashed the windows of eight businesses with a fire extinguisher.
Police put a stop to the carnage after chasing down and arresting the vandal, but not before he caused thousands of pounds of damage and left the area looking like a "warzone".
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The shirtless yob was seen smashing windows on King Street, Maidstone, Kent, on May 11
Credit: SWNS:South West News Service
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He could be seen storming through the street, armed with a fire extinguisher
Credit: SWNS:South West News Service
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CCTV caught the youngster smashing a window
Credit: SWNS:South West News Service
The attack occurred in Maidstone, Kent on Sunday evening around 8pm and has left residents and businesses owners frustrated and shaken, with some saying this is typical of life in the town.
Longtime residents have told the Sun that this was not the first incident of its kind they have seen, and that the area as whole has gone drastically "downhill" in recent years.
Some are even considering moving away from the town, with parents of young children concerned for their family's safety.
In the video, the maniac is seen bashing the windows of The Mall Maidstone shopping centre, several estate agents, and Kokoro and Real Eating Company restaurants.
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The topless man began his rampage at the nearby Sainsbury's where it is speculated he acquired a fire extinguisher which he used to cause "extensive damage" to the store, with police being called around 7.45pm.
After just 2 minutes the police arrived on the scene and proceeded to chase the man down the highstreet.
A police spokesperson said: "Within minutes, officers were at the scene where it is alleged the fire extinguisher was thrown at them and damaged a police vehicle.
"After a short pursuit, the 23-year-old man was detained and taken into custody."
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Laruen Ahmed works behind the counter at Kokoro, a Japanese restaurant which has just reopened after having its windows smashed in on Sunday.
Lauren said she is used to the incidents and drama that come with living and working in Maidstone.
'That's Maidstone, it's normal' she said wearily, 'normally all the shops in town are smashed up, there are lot of problems with drunk people and people on drugs around here.'
Having lived in London before moving to the Kentish town six years ago, Lauren insisted that the attack has not phased her, even though she admitted she had never seen an incident as violent as the one on Sunday.
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She said: 'We get drunk people coming in and we have to deal with it, but this was the worst.'
The 33-year-old mum said she left London to find somewhere safer for her kids to grow up, but she now plans to move again and leave Maidstone, which she finds can be just as dangerous as her previous home.
Lauren's manager at Kokoro told the Sun he and his team have been badly shaken, and that the financial hit to the restaurant has made his job more difficult.
Page & Wells estate agents was also hit in the attack, with windows that should be advertising properties to passersby now almost completely boarded up.
David Page, of Page & Wells, said: 'There was glass everywhere - absolutely everywhere.
'One of the staff knew from social media. It's just a complete hassle for us. Every window is smashed. The door is smashed. Some of our interior illuminated fixtures are damaged. It's huge."
Alex Knight, part owner of the Knight Edmonds estate agents which was also badly hit, said that the damage his storefront had sustained will run into the thousands of pounds.
Speaking to the Sun, Alex said: 'I was at home with the kids, a message came through on the team WhatsApp saying someone had been on a rampage.
'It's really sad to see some of the other businesses hit having to close because of this, a couple of the restaurants had only just opened, we're just fortunate we have enough to cover this.'
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The vandal smashed in windows of the Kokoro restaurant on Maidstone high street, along with seven other businesses
Credit: SWNS
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The suspect was bundled into the back of a police van after he was chased down the high street smashing windows
Credit: SWNS
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The real estate agent's Page and Wells has had to board up its windows following the attack on Sunday
Credit: SWNS
The 35-year-old company director said the repair costs have had to come out of the company coffers, as claiming on the insurance may have worked out more expensive in the long run.
Alex emphasised the knock-on effect that this kind of damage has, with all the money spent on new windows delaying the business taking on more staff or expanding its advertising.
He did, however, joke that the attack was a boon for window fitters, with one tradesman turning up to the scene of carnage first thing in the morning to hand out business cards.
Veronica Ivanova sells fashion, accessories and children's products at Claires, just next door to Real Eating which was badly damaged by the attack and is still closed for trading while repairs are made.
Veronica said the shop was lucky not to be hit in the manic rampage at the weekend, but that she has nevertheless seen her fair share of alarming incidents since moving to Maidstone.
The 32-year-old has lived in the town for three years and is concerned that the levels of anti-social behaviour and crime are getting out of control, claiming that the area has gone downhill drastically in the last year or two.
She told the Sun: 'Before it was a much more quiet town, we didn't have a lot of incidents, but now these things happen so often. Everyday something happens in the street.'
Veronica claimed that the issue of shoplifting was rampant on the high street, with her shop – which sells mainly children's toys and dress-up accessories – now losing hundreds of pounds a month to theft.
She said: 'They don't even care about CCTV, its miraculous. Most of the time its kids doing it, but they even do it when they are out with their family, it's crazy. If you say something they're like 'oh no, we didn't do anything'.'
Veronica pointed to a plush soft toy of the Disney cartoon character Stitch as the item most popular with thieves in the shop.
'He's £35', she said gesturing to the toy, 'I guess that's too much for these kids, they go for him and the expensive sunglasses, earrings, every single place is struggling with that at the moment.'
It is store policy to not approach or confront shoplifters, but Veronica said that this often leads to a complete lack of action to prevent the crime.
When asked why she believes that life in the town is getting worse, Veronica puts the change down to an influx of new residents who are causing most of the crime and disorder.
The population of Maidstone has increased by more than double the national average for England since 2011, the fourth largest jump in population for a council in the Southeast, according to ONS data.
Maidstone resident Jacqui Steel, who sells perfume in The Mall Maidstone, said: 'The people who have moved away and come back say 'oh my God, what has happened to Maidstone'.
'Half the shops are empty, the town has really gone downhill in the last few years.'
Jacqui, 55, grew up in the area and remembers it being a far safer, more welcoming place than in its current state.
She told the Sun: 'You feel a bit intimidated in some places in Maidstone nowadays, which you never did back then.
'It's the big groups of the same sex on the street that just make you feel uncomfortable.'
Although she feels safe from shoplifters in the small, enclosed perfume store, Jacqui said she often hears from others in the shopping centre who are less lucky.
'They give it a go in here, but we are generally pretty safe', she explained, 'but we listen to it on the security radio and places like Matalan, Iceland, Greggs, they get hit the worst.'
Jacqui and her colleague in the shop also complained that despite the mounting issues facing the town, prices were still 'mega expensive', making many residents consider moving elsewhere.
Local resident Frank Holsgrove said that despite previously living in Lewisham and Bexley he had 'never seen as much trouble in those places as what happens in Maidstone'.
The 35-year-old, who has lived in the town for the last 12 years, said: 'I've seen more trouble and more stuff happening in Maidstone than anywhere else.
'I didn't have it in Bexley where I lived, I didn't have it in Southeast London, even in Middlesbrough while I was at university for three years, I have never seen so much trouble.'
Frank told the Sun that during lockdown a murder took place just across the road from his house, and he remembers the police shutting down the town centre after a stabbing at a rap concert around the same time.
He said: 'I couldn't tell you why it's always Maidstone, whether it's society's fault or just a case of a lot of people on drugs really.
'I think Maidstone has been trying to do its bit to sort the problems, but I don't think it's the kind of thing that is ever gonna stop, it might get worse.'
The Mall Maidstone's Centre Manager, Andrew Sarbutt, said regarding the incident on Sunday: 'Police attended an incident in Maidstone town centre on Sunday evening, and we are supporting them with their investigation.
We are also working at pace to support our retailers to report any damage caused as a result of this incident and endeavour to provide uninterrupted access to The Mall.'
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The attack left residents shaken
Credit: SWNS