5 Hospitalized After Pepper Spray Attack During Suitcase Robbery at Busy Airport: ‘Like a Disaster Movie’

Five people were hospitalized after a pepper spray attack at London’s Heathrow Airport, the Metropolitan Police said in a statement.

The incident happened on Sunday, Dec. 7, when a group of robbers allegedly tried to snatch a woman’s suitcase in a car park elevator at Terminal Three. During the struggle, a substance believed to be pepper spray was released, police said.

Among those affected was a three-year-old girl. In total, 21 people were treated at the scene by London Ambulance Service paramedics, and five were taken to hospital. Officials said that at least one person’s injuries were being assessed as potentially life-threatening or life-changing.

A 31-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of assault, and officers are still searching for his accomplices. Police believe four men were involved in the robbery and subsequent spraying.

British graduate student Tom Bate, 27, had just arrived from Austin, Texas, and was waiting for the elevator in the car park with around 40 to 50 people — including children and older adults — when he noticed three young men dressed in black with their faces covered, he told The Times. He said he then saw one of the men “dart through the crowd” and run through a fire escape door.

“The moment they left, one by one, everyone in the lobby started coughing in unison, including me,” Bate told the outlet. “I felt this tingling, burning in the back of my throat. I thought maybe it was a chemical leak.”

The incident led to disruption at the airport, with trains delayed and the car park temporarily closed while emergency services responded.

Metropolitan Police Commander Peter Stevens said in a statement that officers had been working quickly to review CCTV and speak to witnesses. “At this stage, it’s understood that a woman was robbed of her suitcase by a group of four men, who sprayed a substance believed to be pepper spray in her direction,” he said.