With communities left feeling concerned and vulnerable following the rioting and protesting that has followed the murders of three children in Southport, Lancashire Police have issued a statement.
Misinformation spread online about the perpetrator has fuelled disorder in Lancashire and throughout the UK by far-right groups.
Assistant chief constable Phil Davies said he has a robust policing response in place to tackle possible disorder and is monitoring information. Additional officers have also been identified and are on standby if required.
He said: “As the police, it is our responsibility to protect you and keep you safe. We do this by working very much in partnership with other public services.
“We want to let you know, ahead of this week, what we are doing and be very clear to those in our communities, we will support you and as always, ensure the safety of the public.
“We will not stand by if disorder begins, or vandalism takes place. Arrests will be made either immediately or retrospectively. To those seeking to commit these offences, let this be a message to you: we will identify you, we will find you, and we will bring you to justice.
“We continue to work with communities and partners to ensure we are ready to respond to any concerns or incidents and have been grateful for the public’s support. We would encourage people to go about their business as normal. We continue to police Lancashire as usual and as always, the priority is public safety.
“We have seen lots of information circulating online about possible events in Lancashire that haven’t come to anything, so please think twice about what you read, share and believe from online sources. There are a lot of motivations for why people may be sharing information so be critical and if in doubt, look to trusted voices such as the police and your community leaders.
“Police and communities are stronger together. We need the good people of Lancashire to keep us informed.”
If anyone has any information regarding pre-planned disorder or criminality, contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
