Leeds riots: Sobbing father breaks down and begs for his kids again
The sobbing father of children ‘taken away by police’ broke down and begged for their return after members of the Roma community gathered in Leeds on Friday night in solidarity with the family following a night of rioting in the city on Thursday.
The family gathered in front of the wreckage of a burnt-out double decker bus to appeal for the return of their children after police removed several children from a house on Luxor Street on Thursday, sparking civil unrest.
‘Please bring my children back. I want them back. Why take my kids? They were taken from us,’ the father from Romania told The Mirror on Friday.
A family friend told the outlet the father had tried to stop the riots when they broke out on Thursday night and ‘wants calm’.
Members of the Roma community later gathered in solidarity with the family on Friday in peaceful protest, chanting ‘Please bring the kids back!’ over the decision to remove them from the home.
West Yorkshire Police sought to clarify the situation in a statement released Friday, explaining that officers were responding to reports of ‘hostility’ towards social workers at the house on Thursday afternoon when they were themselves ‘attacked’.
They ‘withdrew to a place of safety’ before the riots erupted across the city, leading to a bus being torched and a police car overturned in a dramatic show of anger.
The father broke down as he appealed for the return of his children on Friday morning
The family reportedly said they ‘want calm’ after riots swept Leeds on Thursday night
Distressing footage which emerged Friday shows police officers hauling a young boy out of a house and bundling him into a van
Shocking scenes in Leeds on Thursday night as a bus was set on fire and a police car tipped
Riots in the Hare Hill area of Leeds began Thursday night after social services in the city removed all four children from a family
Police stand by near the remains of a burned bus after civil disturbance on Thursday night
Riots swept Harehills after police responded to reports of ‘hostility’ towards social workers
Vehicles were set on fire and a car was overturned as residents were warned to stay home
A TikTok live stream of Friday’s gatheirngs were shared widely on the site
Police removed the children from a red brick terraced house on Thursday afternoon because their parents were due to fly with them to Romania this Saturday, reports say.
Social Services had concern for the children’s welfare after an incident in April when another child, a nine-month-old baby, suffered a head injury.
The father’s boss, Neculai Tudorache, 44, claimed the social services were alerted to the property after nine-month-old baby was allegedly dropped on its head ‘accidentally’ by another child.
The father told The Mirror he had never hurt his children as he began a ‘hunger strike’ pending their return.
Witnesses said the removal of a child, seen being bundled into a police van, was the flashpoint which kicked off the rioting on Thursday night, with the disorder lasting for hours.
Photos from Friday show tensions rising in the city as locals appeared to argue with police while surrounded by a scene of chaos from the night before.
Families looked on at the immense clean up taking place to clear away the smouldering wreckage of a bus set alight in Harehills.
The intensity of the violence was deemed so severe that firefighters refused to enter the street for hours amid fears crews would be attacked.
West Yorkshire Police yesterday said that a number of people had been arrested following the violence and warned ‘further arrests will be made over the next few days’.
Locals arguing and arguing with police in Harehills, Leeds, following Thursday’s disturbances
Another video shows locals singing along to music while people hold signs which say ‘please give back children’
In videos shared widely on social media, members of the public can be heard chanting ‘please bring the kids back’ – in reference to the children taken by social services
The smouldering wreckage of a bus set alight in Harehills, Leeds after riots brought chaos to the streets
The remains of a bus which was set on fire in the city amid the riots
Police horses at the scene on Friday in Leeds after riots caused chaos in the city
Forensic scientists examine a burnt out bus, as police patrol the Harehills neighbourhood
The story attracted great attention and shows of support from the Roma community in Leeds, reigniting concerns about underlying prejudice towards the minority ethnic group.
Stefania Banu, a local community leader, speaking to the the Daily Mirror said: ‘The mother and father are refusing to eat until they get their children back. We are fully supporting them.
‘We believe it was an injustice that can be rectified by the authorities if they revise the case. Which they have promised to do.’
Ms Banu went onto to say that the manner of which the children were removed from their home was ‘traumatising’ for the family.
A community leader told the Mail yesterday: ‘We are persecuted at home and now here.
‘The police should not have taken the children away, it is upsetting for the parents and family and children.’
Since Thursday’s riots locals in the West Yorkshire city have claimed that they have been ‘persecuted’ by police amid a shocking evening of disorder in the city which saw neighbours clash with officers.
Last year, a report by Leeds City Council aimed at tackling problems faced by the community told of their ‘fierce pride’ and how ‘a problem for one member of the community was seen as a problem for all’.
The report exposed some of the deep ‘challenges’ faced by the community, making up some 5,000 people in Leeds, in the UK and abroad.
The report’s authors say: ‘We were told about the fierce pride the Roma community had for their culture and heritage.
‘This had remained despite the challenges, and the stigma and discrimination, they have faced.
‘We were told about how community members would show great support for one another.’
Harehills has long been one of the most ethnically diverse areas of Leeds.
In light of the concern, a joint statement on behalf of the Leeds City Council and the Romanian and Roma community shared Friday said: ‘The Romanian and Roma community have played a fantastic role in the community and have contributed much to the diversity and richness of the Harehills.
‘We want this work to continue, and develop further work that makes Harehills an even better place to work and live. The events of last night will not help our community or the family.
‘We need to work together with the authorities to ensure that best outcomes for the community, and to ensure our voices are heard at the highest level so we can avoid such scenarios in the future.’
Local people watch the clean up as police patrol Harehills neighbourhood after Thursday’s civil unrest
Forensic scientists examine a burnt out bus, as police patrol the Harehills neighbourhood after Thursday’s civil unrest
A JCB clears the remains of a burnt-out bus, which is cordoned off by police in Harehills, east Leeds, following the disturbance on Thursday evening
Aerial footage shows the aftermath of the trouble, with large sections of the area still cordoned off
Police are still at the scene in Leeds where the violence erupted last night after a number of children were taken in to protective custody by social services (pictured: the street today)
Police cordons remain in place today after rioters torched a bus and flipped police car
Parts of Leeds resemble a warzone, with torched vehicles this morning pictured as smouldering wrecks
Pictured is the bus as a fire raged on board after riots set it ablaze in Leeds on Thursday
Police leave the scene of a burning bus after firefighters extinguished the vehicle
At least twice before, violence and ill-feeling towards police has spilled out into street violence.
In 2001, hundreds of men went on the rampage in Harehills following the wrongful arrest of an Asian man, Hossein Miah.
Officers were lured to nearby Banstead Park over a false report that one had been hit by a petrol bomb.
A multi-ethnic mob then barricaded police with burning furniture from a second-hand store nearby as well as washing machines.
Over 20 cars were torched, 23 officers and a journalist were hurt and a shop was burnt down, with damage put at £500,000.
Twenty-five men were later given jail sentences for what a judge branded ‘violence for the sake of violence’.
Then on Bonfire Night in 2019, terrified Harehills residents cowered indoors as police were forced to battle a five-hour siege by yobs armed with fireworks, bricks and axes.
As with last night’s disorder, locals bravely tried to defend police, with six officers injured.
Three of the rioters were later given jail sentences totalling seven years.
However on the 20th anniversary of the 2001 riots, there were warnings that little had changed.
One business owner told Leeds Live: ‘It’s the same, it hasn’t changed a bit.’
A local resident complained about ‘blatant’ drug dealing, adding: ‘The police are present sometimes but I don’t think it’s enough.’
