‘Blade Runner’ vows they won’t stop destroying cameras until Sadiq Khan ends London’s hated ULEZ expansion
- A member of the Blade Runners vows to continue to sabotage ULEZ cameras
A member of the infamous Blade Runners gang has vowed to continue destroying Sadiq Khan’s hated ULEZ cameras – telling the Mayor of London: ‘We won’t stop until you stop. That’s the bottom line.’
In an interview with Talk TV, the masked maverick – who uses Ben as a fake name – claimed to have wrecked 150 of the traffic cameras since they were expanded across the capital’s boroughs on August 29.
Ben, wearing a balaclava and hood, is seen in the footage using an angle-grinder to cut down a Ulez camera mounted on a traffic light in just four seconds.
The father-of-three, aged in his forties, says he goes out in the dead of night several days a week flouting the law to carry out what he calls ‘unpaid voluntary work’.
Speaking to TalkTV, Ben claims he’s behind a near total blackout of enforcement cameras in the Bromley area, one of the Greater London boroughs where the scheme has been extended.
In an interview with Talk TV , the masked maverick – who uses Ben as a fake name – claimed to have wrecked 150 of the traffic cameras since they were expanded across the capital’s boroughs on August 29
Ben, wearing a balaclava and hood, is seen in the footage using an angle-grinder to cut down a Ulez camera mounted on a traffic light in just four seconds.
Ben insists support among the public is widespread with many hailing them as heroes, saying, ‘We are the voice of the people. You experienced the cheers against ULEZ right there and then you can see we are reflecting the voice of the public.’
Ben – who has been a member of the group for several months, and says membership is growing: ‘It started off as a small group of people and it has gradually grown.
‘Since the expansion went live on August 29, numbers have increased significantly. We’re like a pack of lone wolves. We sometimes work together, we work in isolation, and we all have this common goal.’
Ben says Sadiq Khan is targeting the most vulnerable people at the worst possible time as they struggle through a cost of living crisis. He explains: ‘The members of society that have less disposable income are hit the hardest because if they can’t afford to change their vehicle, they’ll be subject to that daily charge no matter what.
READ MORE: Road workers resort to sticking crude handmade signs to their vehicles to ‘avoid being targeted by anti-ULEZ vandals’
He claims the ULEZ network has been installed to ‘catch everyone out’.
Ben says: ‘It seems like the Mayor’s office and the government are not doing anything for the people. Unfair is just sort of scratching the surface on how bad it is for them. It’s terrible. It’s completely unjust.’
Asked if he could see any merit in ULEZ tackling the dangerously high air pollution levels, he said: ‘If the figures and the statements that Sadiq Khan made were true then of course there would be merit but he doesn’t speak the truth about anything.’
Asked if he sees anything wrong with being a vigilante, Ben replied: ‘I never expected to be part of anything like this and taking these kind of steps. We don’t disrupt the general public in their daily activities, we don’t block roads, we don’t glue ourselves to buildings, the floor – we target the camera network itself.
‘I can see how it could be viewed as being incorrect but lawful rebellion is totally okay in my book,’ adding he would go to prison for the cause, saying, ‘It’s a risk I’m prepared to take and do take.’
He revealed he has taken down over 150 enforcement cameras alone, and vowed those numbers ‘will continue to go up.’
Responding to the footage, London Minister Paul Scully said: ‘I can understand the frustration but I can’t condone the vandalism. You can’t pick and choose the laws you want to adhere to.
‘Nonetheless Sadiq Khan has shown through all of this that he is just not listening.
I’ve got one camera near to where I live that just points towards the entrance of the Royal Marsden cancer hospital.’
Activists, one dressed as a dinosaur and another wearing a dog costume, mocked ULEZ officials during their peaceful protest
Two police officers were filmed speaking to ULEZ officials before they drove off
As well as blocking the ULEZ van’s view with a truck, protesters also put a sign saying “ULEZ scam” in front of the camera
READ MORE: That’s one way to beat the ULEZ crackdown! ‘Blade Runner’ is hailed a ‘hero’ for ‘pretending to break down in front of enforcement van to block camera’s view of the road and stop it catching motorists’
Last month, the ‘Blade Runners’ ramped up their campaign of vandalism trashing yet another one of the ULEZ vans.
Images show one of the vehicles with its windows and windscreen smashed, in the latest escalation by activists determined to thwart Mr Khan’s much-loathed levy.
Video footage of the vandalism was shared on Facebook with the caption ‘The Bladerunners are not backing down’, with anti-Ulez activists mocking the criminal damage, hailing the vandalism as ‘amazing work’.
But the incident is now being investigated by the Metropolitan Police, with the force today hitting out at the vandals.
A spokeswoman from the Met told MailOnline: ‘We are aware of reports of damage to ANPR vans and are investigating. The Met has and continues to treat criminal activity in relation to Ulez seriously and has deployed considerable resources to our operation.
‘Where there are possible lines of enquiry, local investigators will follow up using a range of investigative approaches including CCTV trawls, witness searches and an assessment of forensic opportunities.
‘We are aware of posts on social media referencing Ulez cameras and techniques to disable them. If a report is made to police that someone has vandalised a camera, it will be investigated.’
Anti-Ulez campaigners have turned their fire on mobile camera vans trying to enforce the rules, by letting down the tyres and
One social media post showed a van being towed away on a recovery truck
In September, videos emerged showing Blade Runners wrecking one of the Ulez vans in Maiden Lane, Crayford, plastering it with graffiti and slashing its tyres.
The same van was also pictured wrapped in a huge blue bag covering it down to the wheels.
It was posted with the message: ‘Can we all send our thoughts and prayers to this poor ULEZ spy van that’s looking rather… deflated.’
Meanwhile, terrified road workers have resorted to making crude handmade signs in an apparent bid to not be targeted by Blade Runners.
Although the mobile cameras can only detect incompliant vehicles while stationary, they can move between boroughs to be deployed at hotspots including near Heathrow airport.
People who drive in the zone with a non-compliant vehicle and fail to pay the £12.50 daily fee are initially being sent warning letters.
In the coming weeks Transport for London (TfL) is expected to start issuing rule-breakers with £180 fines, which will reduce to £90 if paid within 14 days.
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