Four people arrested over the occupation of the mansion of the Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska in Belgravia, London on Monday have been released under investigation.
Four others arrested at the scene for trespassing on the nearby “premises of a foreign mission” and taken into custody have also been released under investigation.
The releases come as concerns mount about the scale of the police operation against the four unarmed squatters. Dozens of police, including several vans of Territorial Support Group officers, uniformed officers, officers carrying riot shields and police negotiators, attended. A JCB cherrypicker was repeatedly raised to the balcony of Deripaska’s home where the four squatters were protesting and then lowered again after they refused the police negotiators’ requests for them to come down.
Police wearing riot gear used a drill to break open the front door and enter the house.
Officers cordoned off a large part of Belgrave Square during the incident, with traffic diverted from the area.
The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has said he was “surprised” that police intervened when squatters occupied a mansion owned by a Russian oligarch subject to sanctions, suggesting it was “unclear” why officers had become involved.
The Labour politician said he did not “condone” the actions taken by the squatters but questioned whether the police move against them had been “proportionate”.
The squatters hung the Ukrainian flag from the balcony and banners that stated: “This property has been liberated,” and “Putin go fuck yourself.”
They also issued a statement expressing their desire to use the mansion to accommodate Ukrainian and other refugees.
“As always with wars, empires benefit and common people pay the price,” the statement said.
The squatters used humour during the protest, asking the police to treat them the same way Boris Johnson was treated in the Partygate scandal and send them a questionnaire to fill in rather than arresting them. They also joked to residents in the square that they were their new neighbours and would bring round some brisket the following day.
Deripaska is one of seven oligarchs, including the Chelsea football club owner, Roman Abramovich, added to the UK sanctions list last week in reaction to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
Paul Ridge of Bindmans solicitors, the firm representing some of those involved in the incident, said: “The ferocity of the police response on Monday was highly unusual. It’s very odd. It’s both resource-intensive and at odds with public opinion.”
The City of Westminster police Twitter account issued a statement about the operation saying: “Officers faced difficult decisions as they had not independently verified what was taking place inside the property, who was present and whether there were other risks. Over the following hours we deployed the resources necessary to resolve the situation swiftly but safely, both for our officers and the protesters.”
However, thousands of people posted replies questioning the police response, with one saying it was “a premium oligarch service from the British police” and another saying: “Congratulations on a wonderful job.”
