Three men thought to be involved in organising a flash mob have been arrested on suspicion of plotting to cause a public nuisance.
West Midlands Police said a dispersal order had also been put in place across Birmingham city centre after the force received information about an event similar to one which resulted in criminal damage to shops.
A police statement issued on Friday said: “We received information that a flash mob event organised through social media, was due to take place in the city centre at some point today.
“We’ve acted to prevent it going ahead, after a similar event, that took place in August 2022 resulted in disorder.
“Damage was caused to stores in the Bullring and six people were arrested after 500 people gathered at last year’s flash event.”
An 18-year-old man and two others aged 19 were detained early on Friday from addresses in Birmingham.
They are currently being held in custody on suspicion of conspiracy to cause public nuisance.
Extra officers have been deployed to patrol the city centre to make sure that the event does not go ahead and to ensure the safety of businesses and visitors.
Detective Superintendent Jim Munro, who is leading the operation, said: “We’ve taken action today to prevent the chance of disorder and anti-social behaviour.
“Acting on intelligence that we’ve gathered, we’ve made arrests and we hope this sends a strong message to people who feel they can use our city to cause disruption.
“We know how disruptive large gatherings can be and we work with partners to ensure organised events meet licensing standards, minimise disruption and are safe.
“However, when the event does not meet these standards and is aimed at causing maximum disruption, we will take action to ensure the safety of our visitors, workers and businesses to the city.”
