17 arrested as 'groups of youths' cause 'chaos' at Arndale centre

Groups of teenagers have been causing weekends of 'chaos' at Manchester's Arndale shopping centre.

Police have been a constant presence outside the indoor mall over recent weeks, as 'organised meetups' between young people resulted in shoppers being threatened and intimidated, with shops also seeing various items being stolen.

So far, Greater Manchester Police have confirmed that anti-robbery officers from the force have arrested 17 people as part of their specialist operations in the city centre.

READ MOREBusy city centre street became a crime scene following early morning stabbing

It comes just weeks after shoppers in nearby M&S and Selfridges were evacuated, and glass doors to the Arndale centre were smashed.

And three teenagers were also arrested after they descended on the Arndale's NEXT store in January, which resulted in the stabbing of a 16-year-old boy.

Read that story here.

Police confirmed to the Manchester Evening News that they are 'aware' of groups of young people congregating and causing concern and have deployed more officers to the centre in a bid to tackle the issues.

Chief Inspector Wignall, from City of Manchester division, said: "We're aware of groups of young people congregating, predominantly on weekends, at the Arndale Centre in the city centre over recent weeks including a small number of incidents causing concern.

"There have been reports of young people disrupting shoppers in and near the shopping centre during this time and extra officers have been deployed to work alongside partners including staff in the centre to disperse individuals and speak with those causing issues.

"A number of dispersal orders have been put in place in January and February. Following a serious assault at a