Estate agency rammed in 'racially motivated' attack

A Belfast estate agent whose premises were rammed by a car has said he is frightened and devastated after his business was targeted twice in a week.

Police said masked men drove a hijacked car into the building on Woodvale Road on Tuesday evening.

The business owner, Robert McDowell, believes he was targeted because of claims he was renting homes to asylum seekers.

Six people were arrested and later charged after the third night of disorder in Belfast.

Mr McDowell told BBC Radio Ulster's Nolan Show a group of people gathered outside the estate agency on Friday.

Staff had been warned about the crowd and had pulled down the shutters in advance, but Mr McDowell said those outside tried to force their way into the building.

“It was a bit frightening; they started shouting ‘come out’ and rattling the shutters," the estate agent said.

Mr McDowell said police arrived and the crowd moved down the street, but the incident left staff shaken.

On Tuesday night, Mr McDowell received a phone call telling him that masked men had made at least two attempts to ram a car into his business and that a large crowd had gathered outside the premises.

"I’m sitting here in shock - totally shocked to be truthful - and a bit scared and very, very concerned for the people in that building," he said.

He added his staff had expressed concerns about returning to work after the incidents.

"They’re worried about actually being in their own homes because some of them live quite close by and close to our office, that this could spread and they themselves could be targeted because of where they work," he said.

The estate agency has been based in the area for about 30 years.

Mr McDowell told BBC News NI false claims had circulated on social media claiming the business was providing homes for asylum seekers.

He said the claims were "100% totally untrue".

His tenants require locally-based guarantors and references from other people who are residents of Northern Ireland before they can rent a home, he said.

The estate agent said he did rent homes to tenants who came from overseas to work in Northern Ireland, including health staff.

He added that some of his tenants had been intimidated out of their homes due to racism.

"There's one tenant who has said he's had enough. He's going back to Africa," he said.

"I know of another family who returned to India. She was a nurse but her house was targeted, and a sticker was put on the window, which made it very clear that because of where she was born, she wasn't welcome in the area."

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said six people had been charged in connection with incidents on Tuesday.

Three men - aged 26, 28 and 41 years - have been charged with offences including criminal damage, riotous behaviour, incitement to hatred and possession of an offensive weapon in a public place.

They are due to appear in court on Thursday.

They were arrested in connection with reports of damage to homes and cars in Rathlin Street.

Three boys - aged 16, 16 and 14 - have been charged with riotous behaviour after being arrested on Tuesday in the Shankill area.

They are due to appear in court on 2 September.

Elsewhere, part of the Newtownards Road was set on fire in east Belfast but police helped to dampen the flames.

Supt Allister Hagan said he wanted to reassure the community, adding that officers would maintain a visible presence in the area.

He said the incidents were being investigated as racially-motivated hate crimes.

Police also said eggs were thrown at a shop on the Falls Road at about 18:10 and staff inside were being racially abused by a group of young people.

A 15-year-old boy suffered minor facial injuries in the incident.

The latest violence followed nights of disorder in south Belfast on Saturday and Monday.

Outside of Belfast, a house and a car were damaged in Ballyclare in County Antrim, in what police said was another racially-motivated hate crime.

The front window of a house in Erskine Park was smashed and a brick thrown through the windscreen of a car parked outside in the early hours of Wednesday.

Police said they were also aware of racist graffiti being sprayed on a wall in the area.

Traditional Unionist Voice councillor Ron McDowell, who represents part of north Belfast, said there were concerns among residents in the area about the state of housing and rent prices.

He added that residents were also concerned that asylum seekers were being housed in place of locals, but Mr McDowell said the owner of the estate agents was keen to stress he did not do this.

“If we don’t address people’s natural concerns, then the vacuum that’s created will be filled with extremism and racial attacks, and that’s what we see playing out on the streets," he said.

Mr McDowell said he did not know who was behind the attack on Tuesday night but urged people not to “give way to violence".

Claire Hanna, the MP for South Belfast, said it was the role of elected representatives to not just respond but to lead and to correct some of the misinformation and falsehoods spreading on social media.

“We know there are housing shortages because the executive has failed for a decade and more to build social housing," the Social Democratid and Labour party politician said.

“If you look at the stats, UK-wide - there is 66% less social housing than there was 20 years ago.

"If you look at the in and out of people here, we only have 2,300 extra people – that’s the net impact of immigration. They are not the problem.”

"The scenes we have been seeing across Belfast over the last few days have been a disgrace and have no place in Northern Ireland," said Assistant Chief Constable Melanie Jones.

"We continue to engage with the groups affected by this criminality and hope these arrests show the community that we are taking action.

"Our public order enquiry team will continue to review footage to attempt to identify those involved, as well as those organising and orchestrating this disorder."

The officer added that the PSNI had set up a Major Incident Public Portal for people to submit information, images and footage which they have gathered by mobile phone, dash cam or CCTV.