Police honour bravery of amusement arcade staff

Three amusement centre staff who helped protect seafront visitors as rival gangs fought with machetes have been recognised for their bravery.

Violent disorder erupted near the beach and in the High Street in Southend-on-Sea on 30 July 2024.

Essex Police has presented Certificates of Merit to Nick Singer, Johnjo Remblance and Wissam El Kamel, who all work for arcade operator Star Amusements (SA).

The awards recognised their bravery, professionalism and their contribution to the police investigation and the successful prosecution of those responsible.

El Kamel, a team leader with SA, said: "We were able to help move members of the public to safety, assist with detaining those involved and support the recovery of important evidence for the police."

Johnjo Remblance, SA operations manager, said: "Seeing families and children caught up so close to such a serious incident was incredibly concerning, and our immediate reaction was to get people away from the danger while also assisting the police response."

Nick Singer, SA operations director, said the incident was serious and frightening, adding: "Nobody was thinking about receiving recognition at the time.

"People simply reacted to what was happening in front of them and did what they believed was necessary to help protect others and support the police."

During the disorder, the Star Amusements staff had seen a weapon being thrown into the sea and had gone into the water to try to recover it.

The weapon was retrieved later, once the tide had gone out.

The certificates were presented by Assistant Chief Constable Glen Pavelin.

In July last year, 10 teenagers aged 15-19, were given prison sentences of up to eight years in connection with disorder.

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