Police hunting gang after street brawl using machetes breaks out
Police say they are examining footage which shows masked youths fighting each other with machetes and baseball bats in a residential Birmingham street.
The incident was thought to have happened after a car was first smashed up in another part of the area.
The footage shows mainly masked youths, all dressed in black, fighting with machetes and baseball bats in Willows Road in Balsall Heath. One youth can be seen hacking at the windows of a white car carrying four other hooded figures - who then jump out.
A brawl then erupts around the vehicle - which has its back window smashed - with machete blows appearing to rain down on a number of youths. At one point an individual loses his shoe in the broad-daylight fight, which ends abruptly.
It was unclear what started the violence but a second video showed the white car at the scene of another vehicle being smashed up by youths in Brighton Road, also Balsall Heath.
In that footage the white car's rear window is not smashed.
In the attack on the first vehicle, three youths are seen smashing its windows with machetes before two run back to the white car, while another flees to a waiting red car.
Both drivers then speed away from the scene - dangerously running a red light at the nearby junction.
West Midlands Police said in a statement: "We’re investigating a disorder on Willows Road, Balsall Heath, around 2.20pm yesterday.
"Several men were seen with weapons, including knives, attacking a parked car on the road. Some of the men left in a white Ford Fiesta. Our officers attended and carried out an extensive search of the area, however no weapons were found and the men had dispersed. No-one has come forward with injuries.
"We are aware of a video circulating on social media, which does look alarming. We want to reassure local residents that we are working harder than ever to establish the full circumstances of this incident and trace the individuals involved."
Officers are asking anyone who may have information to come forward.