Police apprehended a man using live facial recognition technology during a proactive patrol in London, in an arrest captured on body-worn video that forms part of a broader transparency drive by the Metropolitan Police.
Officers received an alert from the Met’s live facial recognition (LFR) system flagging a suspect wanted for fraud and theft. On detaining the man, they discovered he was carrying a passport that did not belong to him. The arrest, which the force describes as a routine deployment of the technology, is one of approximately 2,500 made using LFR since the start of 2024.
How live facial recognition works in policing
Live facial recognition technology enables officers to scan crowds in real time and compare faces against a watchlist of individuals wanted for serious offences. The Met has described the system as “groundbreaking”, with deployments resulting in arrests for robbery, rape, violent crime and acquisitive offences such as fraud and theft. When a match is triggered, officers on the ground receive an alert and can move in to detain the suspect.
The technology has faced sustained criticism from privacy campaigners and civil liberties groups, who argue that it undermines the presumption of innocence and amounts to mass surveillance in public spaces. A recent High Court judgment, however, rejected a legal challenge to the Met’s use of LFR, ruling that the deployments were lawful. The judge found that the force had taken sufficient steps to mitigate the impact on privacy and had published adequate guidance on when and how the system could be used.
The Met’s reliance on LFR is part of a wider shift toward using data-driven policing tools. Officers are equipped with body-worn cameras that record interactions, and the force has now changed its policy to allow the release of such footage before court proceedings conclude. Previously, bodycam video could only be shared after all criminal proceedings had ended. The policy change, the Met said, is intended to improve transparency and public trust by giving the public an earlier view of the work officers do to keep them safe.
The same bodycam package that includes the LFR arrest also contains footage from a series of other high-profile incidents, offering a detailed look at frontline policing in the capital.
Golders Green stabbing treated as terrorism
Among the most serious incidents captured is the stabbing of two Jewish men in Golders Green on 29 April 2026. Counter Terrorism Policing London is treating the attack as a terrorist incident. The victims, aged 76 and 34, were both taken to hospital. The younger man has since been discharged, while the 76-year-old remains in a stable condition.
A 45-year-old British national born in Somalia, named Essa Suleiman, was arrested at the scene and has since been charged with two counts of attempted murder and one count of possession of a bladed article in a public place in connection with the Golders Green attack. He also faces a separate charge of attempted murder relating to an incident in Great Dover Street on the same date.
Bodycam footage released by the Met shows officers tasering Suleiman and ordering him to drop a knife. The video also captures an officer and a civilian attempting to disarm him, with one officer seen kicking the suspect as he refused to release the weapon. The use of force during the arrest has prompted questions, but the Met Police Commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley, said the actions of officers “undoubtedly prevented further injury and saved lives”.
The suspect is understood to have a history of serious violence and mental health issues. According to the Jewish community security group Shomrim, Suleiman was seen running along Golders Green Road and is alleged to have been targeting Jewish pedestrians.
E-bike pursuit and rescue from burning building
Other incidents in the footage include the pursuit of an e-bike phone thief, with one officer on a motorbike weaving through traffic and aerial support tracking the chase from above. The suspect eventually fell from the bike and was arrested. A separate report details a five-mile high-speed chase involving multiple police motorbikes and air support that led to the arrest of a 36-year-old man in connection with an iPhone theft. The Met runs a dedicated e-bike unit to combat phone and watch theft, using bikes capable of high speeds and fitted with cameras. E-bike theft remains a significant problem in London, with one device stolen every seven minutes.
Bodycam footage also shows officers entering a burning building to rescue residents. In one instance, seven officers and six residents were treated for smoke inhalation after a fire that police are treating as suspicious; one man has been arrested. Another video captures officers and members of the public working together to free a woman trapped inside a blazing property, using a concrete block and a glass hammer to break through. The woman was suffering from smoke inhalation.
Shoplifters caught and arrested
The final incidents in the package focus on shoplifting, with multiple arrests captured on camera. One compilation video shows a series of shoplifting arrests across London, with some individuals later handed suspended sentences or Criminal Behaviour Orders. A separate clip highlights a prolific thief who was jailed for stealing cosmetics and perfumes worth nearly £300,000 as part of an organised crime gang. The footage shows the immediate consequences of the arrests, with suspects led away and later facing court action.
