Club is biggest crime generator in borough - Met

Popular London nightclub Heaven is the biggest crime generator in Westminster, police representatives told the committee that decided the venue should close.

Westminster Council suspended the club's licence for 28 days on Friday, following a report of a woman being raped by a member of security who worked at the venue on 1 November.

The Met Police, which applied for the licence suspension, confirmed that a man had been arrested and charged with rape, and was on remand in prison.

At the initial hearing on Friday, the owner of Heaven said shutting the venue for 28 days would mean the club "would not survive".

A spokesman for the Met Police told Westminster's licensing sub committee: "This nightclub... it's the highest crime generator in the borough, in the number of incidents reported to the police.

"In terms of sexual assaults, in the last six months there have been 16 reports to the police."

He said that there were a total of 109 crime reports to the Met Police in the last six months, in relation to the nightclub.

Jeremy Joseph, owner of the club which is based off Villiers Street, told the meeting that the reason it was the highest crime generator was because "we're told we have to report absolutely everything".

"We're the largest venue" in Westminster, he added, pointing out that the club had a total capacity of 1,725 people.

The Met Police noted that all venues were told to "report absolutely everything".

Mr Joseph also told the committee that "Heaven will not survive" a licence suspension of 28 days.

"Heaven is fighting for its life at the moment," he said.

"I have a responsibility to over 80 staff who we employ, who will be out of work if you close us."

He said the club's landlord was trying to increase its rent by £32,000 a year and added that spending per head by clubbers had fallen during the cost of living crisis.

"Heaven has been my life for over 30 years and since Covid, all I've done is try to fight to survive," Mr Joseph added.

The hearing was told that when the woman tried to report the attack, other staff allegedly ignored her.

A council spokesperson said the licence suspension was "necessary to prevent serious crime and protect the public".

"A full licensing hearing will be held in December where both the police and venue management will have the opportunity to present new evidence," they said.

"This case is currently subject of an ongoing police investigation, and we are unable to comment further at this stage."

Heaven's owner has been approached for comment.

Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected]