London (Parliament Politics Magazine) – A man was arrested after a pepper spray incident at Heathrow Terminal 3, injuring several people known to each other, police said.
As reported by The Guardian, police have arrested a man on suspicion of assault after several people were reportedly sprayed with a “form of pepper spray” in a car park at Heathrow Terminal 3.
When did the pepper spray attack occur at Heathrow’s Terminal 3?
The incident happened just after 8 am on Sunday at Heathrow Airport’s Terminal 3 multi-storey car park, where a “significant incident” was declared around 8.40 am.
Emergency services, including armed police, ambulance crews, and firefighters, responded after several people were reportedly sprayed with a form of pepper spray.
According to the London Ambulance Service, five people were taken to hospital after a suspected pepper spray incident at Heathrow’s Terminal 3 car park. A total of 21 people were treated at the scene, with the police confirming injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
How did the Met Police describe the assault at Heathrow Terminal 3?
The Metropolitan Police confirmed that multiple passengers were sprayed with “a form of pepper spray” at Heathrow Airport. Officers later arrested a man on suspicion of assault.
They said in a statement,
“Police are in attendance at Heathrow Airport while we investigate the circumstances around the assault of a number of people this morning. Officers were called at 08:11hrs to a multi-storey car park at Terminal 3 following reports of multiple people being assaulted.
A number of people were sprayed with what is believed to be a form of pepper spray by a group of men who then left the scene. Armed response officers attended and arrested one man on suspicion of assault. He remains in custody and enquiries continue to trace further suspects.”
They added,
“London Ambulance Service attended and the victims were taken to hospital. Their injuries are not believed to be life-changing or life-threatening.
There is currently some disruption to traffic in the area and Terminal 3 remains open.”
Commander Peter Stevens said,
“At this stage, we believe the incident involved a group of people known to each other, with an argument escalating and resulting in a number of people being injured.”
He added,
“Our officers responded quickly and there will be an increased police presence at Heathrow Airport throughout the morning, to continue enquiries and ensure the safety of those in the area. We are not treating this incident as terrorism.
I understand the public’s concerns and would like to thank those in the area for their cooperation this morning.”
The Met Police confirmed that officers remain at Heathrow Airport, continuing their investigation and ensuring public safety.
They added,
“Officers remain on scene following an assault at Heathrow Airport this morning. At this stage, it’s believed the incident involved a group of people known to each other and officers remain at the airport to continue enquiries and ensure the safety of those in the area.”
How did the Heathrow incident affect roads and travel today?
National Highways reported that a slip road off the M4 was temporarily closed earlier due to the incident at Heathrow Airport.
It stated,
“A serious incident within the Heathrow Airport Tunnel has resulted in the closure of the M4 spur road southbound between M4 and J4A.”
Later, National Highways added,
“Incident has been resolved and all closures lifted on the M4 southbound Heathrow Airport spur road between M4 and J4A. Thank you for your patience and have a safe onwards journey today.”
After reopening around 9:30 am, the road to Heathrow Airport remains congested, with National Highways reporting delays of more than 45 minutes.
Following the emergency response at Heathrow, National Rail confirmed that train services to the airport have resumed after police concluded their operations.
After this morning’s disruption, Heathrow Airport advised passengers to allow extra travel time and check with airlines for any updates.
How many passengers can Heathrow Airport accommodate now and after expansion?
Heathrow is effectively at its operational limit, handling approximately 84 million passengers annually on its two runways. Recent reports indicate passenger growth has “flatlined” or stalled due to this ceiling.
The government-supported expansion plan, which includes a new third runway and major terminal upgrades, aims to increase annual capacity to around 150 million passengers. This would also raise flight capacity from 480,000 to 756,000 per year.
