It may turn out, after a more careful examination of the various messages being pinged around, that this was indeed a social networking crime spree.
The Met has indicated it is ready to act on any information it finds.
But that will take time and a more methodical study.
The extent to which investigators are able to sift out genuine rioters from the internet 'echo chamber' and then bring real world prosecutions will provide valuable lessons, both about the use and abuse of technology, and also law enforcement's capacity to deal with it.
Bookmarks