The Metropolitan Police requested a review of the premises licence of the Frankfort Arms in Maida Hill after managers downplayed a stabbing inside the venue after closing time last month.
The Frankfort Arms will discover if it can reopen when Westminster City Council meets on Monday (June 16).
Its owner Craft Union Pub Company says it wants to rebrand the Harrow Road pub under a new name and find new operators – and will not challenge Westminster City Council if it seeks to extend the licence suspension.
Craft Union apologised and offered to axe live music events and close at 11pm – an hour earlier than it is currently allowed to stay open.
In a letter to Westminster City Council, the pub chain said: “The cause of the issues highlighted in this review both in terms of crime and disorder and public nuisance is the mismanagement of the pub by the former operators and insufficient control of the outside areas late at night. The proposals we are now making address the root cause of those issues.”
Officers visited the pub shortly after midnight on May 17 and were told by the manager that a fight had taken place but nobody had been injured. Around 20 minutes later, police received a call from St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington saying a man had presented himself to A&E with a single stab wound to the thigh. They linked the man to the incident at the Frankfort Arms.
A report before Westminster City Council read: “No crime scene was put in place as the incident was significantly downplayed by the manager and security. They led officers to believe this was a minor scuffle, yet someone was stabbed and had their injuries treated by the manager.”
Craft Union closed the watering hole on May 19 and fired the operators ahead of an emergency licence review. The meeting, which took place at Westminster City Council on May 22, resulted in a licence suspension, a ban on the sale of alcohol and the immediate removal of the designated premises supervisor.
Police had reviewed CCTV footage and found staff continued to serve alcohol outside its licensed hours. The victim had reportedly been allowed entry to the premises at 12.15am and his friend ordered an alcoholic drink at 12.20pm – 20 minutes after closing time. The alleged stabbing took place at 12.24am.
Police arrived on site shortly before 1am and spoke to the manager who said a masked man entered the pub and started “a scuffle” but that body had been injured. Officers reported signs of a disturbance such as broken glass on the floor but saw no blood.
They also said no staff came forward as witnesses and “no person made any mention of a stabbing or the fact there was a knife”.
After the call from St Mary’s Hospital, police returned to the premises and met the manager. He showed them CCTV that showed the incident “was clearly more than a scuffle”.
The manager said the victim’s friend barricaded the door to the female toilets and bandaged him up. When police attended later in the afternoon, the manager said he had bandaged the victim himself.
Police said the management were “fully aware” a serious assault had taken place, yet opted not to say anything. They also said security failed to inform them there had been a knife on one of the suspects.
Police said the venue had reported four violent incidents in the previous three months, with many occurring as late as 12.55am.
Craft Union said it requires all its publicans to report incidents on an internal log and has procedures in place to ensure to share information is shared with authorities. It found it was “clear” that none of the incidents referred to by police were reported.
The chain said the regional manager in charge of the Frankfort Arms has been suspended and was subject to disciplinary proceedings. It said he will no longer be area manager covering the premises irrespective of the outcome of that review.
Craft Union has been contacted for comment.
