A Greenwich shisha bar could lose its licence amid claims it is frequented by gun-carrying gangsters.
The Hayatt Lounge in Charlton was hauled before Greenwich Council on Wednesday after several fights at the venue, including an incident on June 18 where a woman was hit over the head with a used bottle of Hennessy’s brandy and then slashed in the face.
At a hearing, the Met pressed the council to revoke the restaurant’s licence, raising fears that armed gang members were also frequenting the venue.
The force claimed it had “recent and reliable” intelligence that gangsters were paying door staff to turn a blind eye to members carrying firearms.
PC Mark Evans said that officers were highly concerned gang members were able to “conduct criminality” within the venue, such as drug dealing, without being reported.
“Unknown gang members attending will often be in possession of firearms for their protection owing to rival gang members being present,” he alleged in a written witness statement.
“Unknown gang members will pay door staff at the premises to facilitate those carrying firearms into the premises.”
He said he was unable to name the alleged gangs publicly.
Among fights at the lounge were an “out of control” brawl on June 10, in which two groups of men used shisha pipes, plates and bowls “as weapons”, councillors were told.
In another incident days later, a drunken patron allegedly hit another woman outside the venue, pulled off her wig, and also bit her on the breast.
James Rankin, counsel for the Met Police, said police believed that the venue had attempted to mislead over a lack of internal CCTV over the June 18 glassing, by saying the CCTV’s hard drive had overheated in hot weather.
This was vehemently denied by Hayatt Lounge, which described it as a “misunderstanding” and said that CCTV was available to view.
In response to the allegations, general manager Gemma Creamer described the fights as “isolated” and rare incidents.
She pointed to a raft of new safety measures the venue says it has introduced in response, such as a detector arch at the venue’s entrance and new age limits for customers.
Of alleged gang activity, she said: “Most of us will all be aware that violence and gangs in London is a prominent thing taking place on a consistent basis.
“I’m not going to stand here and say that we don’t have any individuals wanting to cause fights, maybe being involved in fights, known to certain individuals.
“But what I can say is that as a business we do all we can to prioritise the safety of our customers and we do all that we can to ensure that the premises are safe, from when they come in to when they leave.”
The venue argued that it should be allowed to continue operating with additional conditions.
It said that closure or suspension would negatively impact the 60 people employed by Hayatt.
A decision on the venue’s licence will be made within five working days.
