Gangsters are stashing knives in playgrounds to get round stop an search

Gangsters are stashing knives, guns and drugs in children's playgrounds in order to circumvent the increase in stop and search, a senior police officer has said.

Officers in north London recovered a terrifying haul of eight lethal blades, including a Samurai sword style knife, during three routine weapons sweeps earlier this week.

They also found a quantity of Class A drugs that had been hidden close to where youngsters gather to play.

Detective Chief Superintendent Lee Hill, who leads the Metropolitan Police Violent Crime Taskforce, said his officers were finding weapons on a daily basis hidden in easily accessible open spaces such as parks and playgrounds.

One theory is that gang members, fearful of being caught with weapons in the upsurge in stop and search tactics, are stashing them in places they can easily get to.

Mr Hill said: "I've no doubt that does play into it. Obviously with the increase in stop and search, people come alive to that, that's the reality of the situation, and we are seeing more weapons being concealed."

"I think it is a trend that takes place across London, certainly from what we are seeing those open spaces.

"It is difficult to try to get into the psyche of a criminal or a young person who is involved in this sort of activity, but clearly where they are able to access things quickly because they have been involved in argument, that is something we are seeing across London."

Describing the haul from a playground in Crouch Hill, north London, Mr Hill said: "These knives could have fallen into the wrong hands, worse they could have been acquired by young children."

Inspector Richard Berns, who is based in Camden, north London, said on Twitter that stop and search meant criminals were "too afraid" to carry knives, and were instead hiding them to be retrieved later.

Merseyside Police, which received £4.2 million extra government funding to tackle violent crime, has also seen an increase in the number of concealed weapons found in open spaces.

There were 149 homicides in London in 2019, up from 133 the previous year and despite a drop nationally.

Assistant Commissioner Mark Simmons insisted that the force is taking the right action to try to bring numbers down, but admitted it is a "huge" challenge.

Speaking at Scotland Yard, he said: "The challenge remains huge for us in terms of how we take the next step in tackling violence.

"This is a huge concern for us. It is not enough for us to reduce overall violence if we can't have an impact on the number of young people who die."