Four arrests following anti-lockdown protest in Sussex
Around 250 attended the event on Saturday
Police have made four arrests at an protest march against coronavirus restrictions in Sussex on Saturday.
Around 250 were at the event, which started at the Angel of Peace Statue in Hove and went along Brighton seafront before returning to Hove Lawns.
Sussex Police said two of their officers were assaulted during the event, suffering minor injuries.
Two men, aged 57 and 20, were arrested on suspicion of assault.
In addition, a 61-year-old man was detained on suspicion of committing a public order offence, while another man aged 25 was arrested on suspicion of breaching Covid-19 legislation.
All four remained in custody as of 4.15pm on Sunday.
Prior to the event, Sussex Police had issued a message urging people to adhere to the national guidance and help prevent the spread of the virus.
Sussex Police Chief Superintendent Jane Derrick said:
“We still remain in a global pandemic an there are rules and regulations in place to protect our communities and help prevent the spread of the virus.
“People have the right to protest and this is a well-established and key part of our democracy. However Coronavirus is a deadly disease and there are restrictions in place to prevent its spread and ensure our local business can remain open for trading.
"We made four arrests today and we are continuing to investigate the organisation of this event to determine whether there have been any further breaches of the Covid legislation."
"We would like to thank the community of Brighton for their patience while this event took place which caused some disruption to the city centre."
Protests are exempt under The Health Protection (Cornonavirus Restrictions) Regulations 2020 but only if certain criteria is met by the organiser.
The legislation requires the organiser to have carried out a risk assessment and ensure all reasonable measures to guarantee those attending will limit the risk of the transmission of coronavirus.
The event was organised by Save Our Rights UK, a group which describes itself as a “grassroots movement that sees how this country is not governed by a real democracy”.