THIS is the shocking moment a security guard punches and headbutts "shoplifters" during a violent shopping centre brawl.
Footage uploaded onto social media went viral with the incident taking place at the Westfield Stratford City complex in London.
According to Westfield Stratford, the brawl was sparked after an "alleged shoplifting incident" in JD Sports.
The violent altercation then spilled out into the mall in full view of the public.
Footage shows the security guard pinning down one youth to the floor while being surrounded by three others.
One of the alleged shoplifters takes a few swipes at the man behind before landing a kick on his back as shocked bystanders look on.
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The brawl then escalates as the security guard launches a punch at the hooded youth on the floor before fending off attacks from the other three.
As he is grabbed by a second, the JD Sports worker pauses to deliver a brutal headbutt to leave another youth reeling.
The group of youths continue to swarm him at the same time with one even picking up a metal stand to hit him on the back.
But despite being significantly outnumbered, the security guard more than holds his own.
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Two of his attackers then flee while he holds a youth in blue tracksuit bottoms in a headlock.
It's at this point a bystander intervenes and convinces the security guard to let him go with the pair still grabbing each other as the video ends.
And viewers on social media were largely in favour of the security guard and believed he had a right to defend himself doing his job.
One said: "Security guard is a hero .. but.. lucky.... what's the odds of someone carrying a knife???"
While another commented: "You can’t tell a man to stop while he is getting jumped. He showed them grown man strength.
"But that’s why a lot of youts carry weapons because they can’t fight."
"He is getting punched, kicked and hit with a metal stand by 3 or 4 people. He has a right to defend himself," said a third.
Alyson Hodkinson, General Manager at Westfield Stratford City said: “Unfortunately after an alleged attempted shoplifting incident inside JD Sports an altercation between a number of youths and the JD Sports security officer spilled out onto the mall.
"As soon as Westfield security officers were made aware they attended the scene to dissolve the situation.
"The safety of our customers, retailers and employees is of utmost importance to us and our officers are skilled to deal with difficult situations, regularly undertaking training to maintain safety within our malls at all times.
"We are meeting with JD Sports to discuss the incident and we will look to how we can share best practise with their team and continue to support retailers with security matters.”
In a statement a JD spokesperson said: "Following alleged attempted shoplifting, we are looking into an incident between five males and a security employee of a third-party contractor for JD Group at Westfield Stratford.
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"At this stage, we are not in a position to comment further on the issue. We do not condone violence of any kind, and take all incidents reported to us extremely seriously.
"The safety of our colleagues and any third parties engaged by us is our number one priority, and it should never be part of anyone’s job to endure violence or abuse.”
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