Police have issued grainy CCTV of two eco-warrior suspects believed to be deflating tyres of SUVs across the south of England.
The Tyre Extinguishers, a splinter group of Extinction Rebellion, have claimed to have struck more than a thousand 4x4s nationwide including 20 SUVs on Monady night in the Clapham Junction and Battersea areas of south London.
The “leaderless” group declared they want SUVs banned in urban areas, pollution levies to tax SUVs out of existence and investment in public transport.
Sussex Police has received 54 reports of vehicles having had their tyres deflated so far– the vast majority of which occurred overnight on the weekend of March 7.
They are hunting two suspects who were seen entering Bernard Road from Hartington Road in Brighton at around 3.40am. The force claimed that several cars had their tyres deflated in the area around that time.
Inspector Nicky Stuart, of Brighton and Hove’s Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: “We understand the impact these crimes are having on the community and I would like to reassure the public that our officers are working round the clock to catch those responsible.
“This type of behaviour will absolutely not be tolerated in Brighton and Hove, and while we have seen a marked drop in the number of incidents since the weekend of March 7/8, any such occurrences are unacceptable.
“We are exploring several lines of enquiry, but as always the public are our eyes and ears.”
The activist group shared a screenshot of the appeal and goaded Sussex Police on Twitter, saying: “We like that Sussex Police have labelled this video ‘Operation Extinguisher’.”
We like that Sussex Police have labelled this video "Operation Extinguisher" ...! 👮🚨🚔 pic.twitter.com/guoRIi4O0D
— The Tyre Extinguishers (@T_Extinguishers) March 29, 2022
In a manifesto on their website, the Tyre Extinguishers said the vehicles “exist purely for the vanity of their owners, who see them as a status symbol” and “SUV drivers tend to be richer and therefore tend to be white”.
The group explain how to safely deflate tyres on their site and claim to instruct activists to “Avoid cars clearly used for people with disabilities, traders’ cars (even if they’re large), minibuses and normal-sized cars.”
Tyre Extinguishers usually strike in the early hours of the morning and leave a calling card on the victim’s windscreen explaining that their car is causing a climate disaster and urging them “not to take it personally”.
If you see anything suspicious, recognise either of these two individuals or have any information that could help, contact police online or by calling 101, quoting Operation Extinguisher.
