I joined the secret police operation protecting women at Harry Styles

I’m at Wembley’s box park and there’s definitely a party vibe. To one side of me, there are England fans, fixated on the screens showing the World Cup.

To the other, a stream of Harry Styles fans files past for the former One Direction star’s penultimate Wembley Stadium gig following a record-breaking 12-night run.

But among the football fans and Harry fanatics there is a secret police operation protecting the thousands of women and girls at the venue. And that’s why I’m here.

So far a man in his 50s has already been an arrest for indecent exposure. And it is not just Harry Styles concerts. There have been seven arrests relating to violence against women and girls at concerts this summer.

This includes Stephen Watkins, 42, who has been charged with upskirting at a Bad Bunny Concert in Tottenham on Sunday.

The team I’m meeting have dressed up for the gig – one of them proudly shows me her cowboy hat, which she hopes will help to blend in.

Thousands of Harry Styles fans flock to Wembley Stadium (Picture: Nick Edwards for Metro) There are certain behaviours police are trained to spot (Picture: Nick Edwards for Metro)

But under the glitter and sparkles they’re hiding handcuffs and walkie-talkies, ready to intervene on potential upskirters.

As England fan’s groaned at the Democratic Republic of Congo’s opening goal in the World Cup clash, one of the undercover officers told me some of the signs they look for to spot them.

Moments earlier, they had flagged a man whose behaviour didn’t quite fit. While most fans were taking photos of Wembley Stadium or posing with friends, he appeared to be wandering through the crowd taking pictures of people and nearby stalls.

Their intervention is incredibly simple – just strike up a conversation with them.

Acting Inspector Vincent Maningas speaks to Metro while in the crowd (Picture: Nick Edwards for Metro)

One said: ‘Just going up to them, making yourself known, can hopefully plant a seed of doubt in their mind and disrupt a crime before it happens.’

To you and me, their behaviour might not seem out of the ordinary. But to a trained eye, it can seem pretty obvious.

One indicator officers pay particular attention to is men attending alone, especially if they are lingering around crowds of young women rather than heading into the venue.

Police patrol outside the stadium (Picture: Nick Edwards for Metro)

‘Yes, they could just be here because they love [Harry Styles],’ one told me. ‘But his fanbase is largely young women and girls. We would rather be safe than sorry.’

Detective Superintendent Andrew Wadey said: ‘About 50 officers are deployed to look for this type of predatory behaviour. What they look for can range from catcalling to being generally obnoxious.

‘We want to tell criminals, you never know who is watching and if you behave in a way that is unacceptable, we will deal with you.’

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