These people were not protesters, says policeman hit by missile in student riot
A policeman who was knocked unconscious by student rioters in Parliament Square told of the terrifying moment he came under a barrage of missiles from a hate-filled mob.
Pc Jim Mansfield, 29, suffered a blow to the head from a missile which cracked his protective helmet and left him with concussion. Doctors said he could have been killed had he still been wearing the soft cap he had on earlier.
Today Pc Mansfield, a borough-based officer who volunteers for riot duty, described Thursday's riot as "the most concerted, sustained and large-scale violence I've ever faced".
A veteran of public order protests, including last year's G20 demos in the City, he had been part of a unit guarding the Palace of Westminster but was moved to the top of Victoria Street, where some of the fiercest clashes took place.
He said: "We were under a pretty concerted attack for more than an hour. They were throwing snooker balls, paint bombs, flares, fireworks and smoke grenades. They improvised with concrete blocks and metal fences, anything they could get their hands on.
"I had been hit on the head by a few objects by that point — we all had. But then something hit me on the top of my helmet — I didn't see what it was — and I was knocked out cold. I just fell down in the crowd."
He was trampled on and suffered severe bruising to his knees and legs before being dragged away from the front line. His riot shield was stolen.
The officer said that for much of the time the demonstration was good-natured. Earlier he had chatted with students and shared some mints he had brought.
But the mood turned quickly when a different group arrived with hoods and masks, armed with missiles and flares. He said: "They were not protesters, these people had come prepared."
Pc Mansfield, who works for Plumstead CID, revealed how his family found out about his injury when they saw him being treated on the ground on television.
"When I came round my biggest fear was that my girlfriend and my mum would be seeing this. They saw the pictures of me on the news but didn't know how I was and couldn't get hold of me."
The officer, who is now recovering at home in Dartford, has been visited in hospital by Met commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson to congratulate him for his bravery. Pc Mansfield was one of 12 police injured in the riots.
