A man has said he “thought he was dreaming” after waking up to find Boris Johnson in his flat, surrounded by police officers.
Splinter Sales, who described himself as a hip-hop rapper, told The Independent he woke up to shouts of “police” outside the property in West Norwood, southeast London, on Wednesday morning.
He filmed the moment he opened the door of his bedroom to see the prime minister standing in the hallway as part of a Metropolitan Police raid.
His video, which has gone viral after being posted on TikTok, shows Mr Johnson smiling and asking, “How are you doing?” after the man called out, “Wagwan [what’s going on], Boris?” and burst into laughter.
Splinter Sales, who did not want his full name published, told The Independent he “woke up to them screaming ‘Police!’” at about 6am and went to the door of his room in the shared flat.
“I was so shocked,” he added. “I was drunk last night, I woke up to see Boris Johnson in my face. I thought I was dreaming.
“I had a good time at [Notting Hill] carnival and I never expected it, pow! I was just so confused.”
Splinter Sales described his surprise meeting with the prime minister as a “very close encounter” but added: “I think he was pleased to see me.”
The rapper said he was not arrested, adding: “I don’t know what they were looking for but nothing happened to me.”
Mr Johnson joined the raid as part of a series of engagements in his last days as prime minister, ahead of the announcement of the Conservative Party leadership election result.
He visited officers in Violence Reduction Units and championed the drive to recruit 20,000 additional police officers, saying: “Making our streets safer has always been central to my mission to level up this country, because everyone should have the security, confidence and opportunity that comes from having a safe street and a safe home, wherever they live.”
In a press release issued before the video emerged, the Metropolitan Police said the dawn raid was an intelligence-led targeted operation, aimed at combatting drug-related violence.
A spokesperson confirmed that no arrests were made at the property, but said officers recovered class B drugs and paraphernalia, as well as a suspected drugs line phone, which was seized for investigation.
There was no suggestion that any of the items in the shared property belonged to Splinter Sales, and a 23-year-old man was arrested elsewhere on Wednesday on suspicion of supplying class A drugs.
Detective Superintendent Victoria Sullivan said: “Drug dealing inflicts untold harm on our communities. Disrupting the lines of supply is central to our work in tackling violence which is the Met’s top priority. There are strong links between the two.
“This is just one of many enforcement operations being carried out daily as part of our focus on targeting the line holders, while also helping to safeguard the vulnerable people they exploit. Our message to the drug dealers is clear – we are coming for you.”
Scotland Yard said that since 2019, it had arrested over 2,000 holders of “county lines” numbers that are used to sell drugs, closed down more than 800 lines, made over 1,000 arrests and secured around 3,500 charges for drugs, slavery and weapons offences.
