A physical altercation took place between Thomas Moffitt (commonly known as Young Bob) and Dr Toyin Agbetu - a lecturer in political and social anthropology - at approximately 12.42pm today.
Both parties were arrested half an hour later by the British Transport Police on suspicion of Affray. Only Moffitt, however, was removed in handcuffs.
Moffitt and Dr Agbetu both allege not to have initiated the fight. Moffitt has also made a Twitter post claiming he was “punched” and “strangled” by a member of UCL teaching staff.
Within the post, he admits to having fought back, and appeals to his viewers to “make this guy famous and get him sacked”.
However, The Cheese Grater spoke to several eyewitnesses who unanimously rejected Moffitt’s version of events, though it cannot verify these claims.
One witness told us “there was a scuffle - the other man may have punched back”, but “Young Bob appeared to start it - he punched the other man several times”.
Another witness stated that Moffitt was lying as "he had caused the altercation first and he wasn’t strangled”.
The Cheese Grater has received footage which shows Moffitt being restrained as he attempted to continue the fight before going on to push another observer.
Moffitt did show clear signs of having received a blow to the face. One cheek bore a visible red mark while he was talking to the Police.
The Cheese Grater was able to speak briefly to Dr Agbetu who told us that his vision had been impaired with red spots after Moffitt struck him.
Prior to the altercation, Dr Agbetu had been on his way to host office hours.
The presence of right wing activists such as the self-styled ‘Young Bob’ on the streets surrounding UCL has become commonplace. Demonstrations in response to the divisive rhetoric espoused by these individuals are also a regular feature.
Moffitt was pictured today with a sign reading “abortion is immoral, transgenderism is a mental illness, deport millions, let’s talk”.
According to multiple witnesses, Moffitt also repeatedly told Dr Agbetu that he “should be deported". The Cheese Grater cannot verify this claim.
At the time of the altercation, protesters opposing the activist’s operations numbered approximately 20, but numbers increased as police began to arrive at the scene.
One witness accused Moffitt and his cameraman of deliberately trying to escalate the protest against them.
In the half hour between the altercation and the arrests, Moffitt continued to film content in which he attempted to engage students.
He repeatedly claimed to have been attacked and to have footage of Dr Agbetu beginning the altercation on camera.
Just moments before he was handcuffed, Moffitt told one group of students that if he had thrown the first punch, he would have been arrested.
Watching students appeared delighted by Moffitt’s arrest and were videoed chanting “cheerio, cheerio, cheerio” as he was taken to the police van.
A UCL spokesperson said:
"We are aware of reports that two people were arrested near UCL today.
This took place on public streets outside of UCL's campus. As this is currently being investigated by the police, it would not be appropriate to comment further at this stage."
A British Transport Police spokesperson said:
“At around 12.42pm today (4 November) our officers came across an altercation in the vicinity of Gordon Square in Central London. Two men aged 59 and 18 were arrested on suspicion of affray and taken into police custody.
Further enquiries will be carried out by the Metropolitan Police as the incident occurred on their jurisdiction.”