Police arrest four after protest at Russian oligarch’s London mansion

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Four people have been arrested following a protest on the balcony of an oligarch’s London mansion.

The Metropolitan Police said a group had come down before being arrested after around seven hours in the building.

Demonstrators gained access to the property, in Belgrave Square, west London, at about 1am on Monday. It is reported to belong to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska.

Police said in a statement: “The four have been arrested under section 144 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012. A police presence will continue at the scene.

“Police were called shortly after 01:00hrs on Monday, 14 March to a residential property in Belgrave Square. 

“It was reported that a number of people had gained entry to the building and hung banners from upstairs windows. Officers completed a search of the property and are satisfied there are no people left inside.

“During the evening of Monday, 14 March four people were arrested after they attempted to gain access to the row of buildings where the protest was ongoing in Belgrave Square.

“They have been arrested under section 9 of the Criminal Law Act 1977. All those arrested remain in custody.”

The street had been cordoned off with at least 10 police vehicles and more than 30 officers at the scene earlier on Monday.

A Scotland Yard spokesperson said officers completed a search of the property early in the afternoon and found no protesters inside.

Officers wearing harnesses first tried to deploy a ladder to access the balcony but after the squatters sat in the way to obstruct them, a JCB crane was moved in to lift them up instead.

Police wearing riot gear used a drill to break open the front door and enter the house.

The squatters call themselves the London Mahknovists, after Nestor Makhno, who led an anarchist force that attempted to form a stateless society in Ukraine during the Russian Revolution of 1917-23.

They hung a Ukrainian flag as well as two signs which read “this property has been liberated” and “Putin go f*** yourself”.

Mr Deripaska, an industrialist who has had close links with the British political establishment, was targeted with sanctions by the government last week.

His wealth is estimated to be £2.3bn and he has a multimillion-pound property portfolio in the UK which, according to a 2007 High Court judgment, includes the house at 5 Belgrave Square.

Records indicate it has not changed hands since.

Additional reporting by PA