There goes the neighbourhood! Rightmove link exposes arresting scene

A Google Street View photo on Rightmove has given one vendor some extra publicity they doubtless didn’t expect or want.

When prospective house buyers press the ‘open map’ feature on a semi-detached house in America Lane, Haywards Heath, they’re treated to a street image of two police officers holding guns in the road outside.

Just a few yards down the road – which several police cars are parked along – a group of people are seen standing with officers by an ambulance. Around the corner, there’s a smashed-up white van with another officer standing nearby.

Although the incident happened in 2019, it still appears on StreetView in the Rightmove link for the £375,000 three-bedroom home being marketed by agent Mark Revill & Co, which is keeping a low profile over the story.

However, Twitter user Ben Oliver picked up on it and has amused hundreds of other social media followers who’ve posted jokes and ironic adverts about the property.

Google cameras captured the moment armed police responded to a violent fight between two families. With unfortunate timing, they passed the scene as it unfolded in the Sussex town, capturing armed officers and police cars, which resulted in three people, including a teenager, being sentenced for their part in the fracas.

Iain Kennedy, CMO at Rightmove (pictured), tells The Negotiator: “The map view function together with street view are well loved elements of the home-hunting experience, giving buyers a broader view of the property and the area. Although unusual sights and occurrences such as this police incident can be captured via street view, it is very rare.”