Superintendent Ormond gave permission for them to smash the door in, pending a warrant. It was received ten minutes later, and one of the officers stepped forward with a battering tool, taking the door out with one resounding crack. On entering, they found the usual waste associated with drug abuse and idleness. The air was thick with stale smoke; the place had obviously been vacated recently. Ashtrays full of needles, spoons, foil and brown goo were everywhere. Clearly the flat was not a home but a drugs den. It was confirmed empty and sealed off, waiting for a forensic team to sift through the dregs.

Over the radio, reports were growing in number and urgency of disturbances across the estate. Outside Tyrone Fenton’s flat, shouting drew the officers to the stairwell, where a crowd of around thirty residents surrounded four colleagues. The situation was escalating quickly. No one had anticipated the level of anger being displayed. They’d expected everyone to stay indoors, as they did ordinarily when police patrolled. A gathering of such size on the estate had never been witnessed before, and it was clear that this wasn’t an isolated incident. Suddenly all the residents of Beacon wanted to have their voice heard. The police had woefully underestimated the scale of defiance. Op Eagle was falling apart. Officers communicated their critical assessment over their radios, but no one seemed to be commanding the operation centrally. There was no clear strategy on how to withdraw. It hadn’t been discussed.

Superintendent Ormond had not changed the orders and the commander on the ground was left to make the decision to pull the plug. What had started as a multi-locational display of control was turning into a mass protest, and they weren’t equipped. The radio crackled with requests to regroup and bring Op Eagle to a close for now, perhaps regaining a foothold after things had quietened down. Questions were heard flying back and forth; confusion was setting in. Individual pods of officers decided to follow their original orders and make their way through the streets, stopping and questioning groups of people; others abandoned the brief and made their way back to the vehicles.

Finally a decision was made and it was communicated to all officers that Op Eagle was being suspended. The new objective was preserving the security of personnel. The search for the Cotton brothers was called off and the officers prepared to get back into their vehicles. Overhead could be heard the whir of a helicopter’s blades. Police choppers carried infrared cameras as well as equipment for thermal imaging and long-range stills. They could track anybody who moved and record it in real time. It was a warning to the community of the Beacon Estate to step down.