Legal & General London office becomes latest target of ‘red paint vandalism’
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A corporate office in the City of London is the latest to be targeted by ‘red paint vandalism’.
Bright red paint – imitating blood spatters – has been splashed around the entrance to the Legal & General offices on Coleman Street in central London.
Several windows were also smashed.
It follows similar attacks on the offices of JP Morgan, Invesco and Barclays in the last year or so.
Superintendent Jesse Wynne at the City of London Police told Metro: ‘Around 2am on October 14, City of London Police were alerted to individuals damaging a premises on Coleman Street.
‘The suspects smashed windows and sprayed the front of the building with red paint.
‘Clear lines of enquiry are being explored, and no arrests have been made at this stage.’
The red paint is occasionally accompanied by graffiti reading ‘drop Elbit’, relating to the Israel-based military tech company.
Earlier this year Palestine Action broke into RAF Brize Norton and sprayed red paint into the turbine engines of two planes – an action which led to their proscription in the UK.
And in 2023 BBC Broadcasting House was doused in red paint after the broadcaster reportedly ‘refused to call Hamas terrorists’ over the October 7 incursion and abduction of civilians.
Not long after October 7, two Jewish schools in London were also vandalised with red paint.
Where have cases been reported?
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‘Red paint vandalism’ attacks have been reported across the UK including in Huddersfield, Bradford, Reading, Edinburgh and a number of London boroughs.
These attacks have not only focused on big business, instead targeting homes on residential streets amid claims they are ‘brothels’ – claims strongly denied by locals.
Back in May, JP Morgan’s HQ was left with smashed windows and splattered with red paint.
The Invesco office followed a month later – Palestine Action took responsibility for this – with today’s attack on Legal & General’s office four months after that.
Palestine Action also took credit for vandalising 15 branches of Barclays in 2024.
Are the red paint vandalism cases linked?
Palestine Action has taken credit for several of the red paint vandalism cases which targeted big business.
They said they were using the protests to call on the firms to divest from arms companies that sell to Israel, as well as firms linked to fossil fuels.
Outside of Palestine Action’s protests, the Metropolitan Police told the Guardian earlier this year that it is still investigating whether the attacks in London are linked to others outside the capital.
A spokesperson said in March: ‘These incidents are being investigated by the local safer neighbourhoods team to ensure all investigative leads are explored and support is provided to the victims of these incidents.
‘At this stage there has been no arrest, and enquiries into the circumstances continue, including to establish if there is a link to other incidents outside the local and London areas.’
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