Paris locals send horror warning to British tourists attending Olympics: 'Stay away!'

Tourists have been warned not to stray from the main streets of the Paris neighbourhood where the Olympic stadium and athletes' village are based.

Residents of Saint-Denis told the Express visitors who took chances risked becoming a victim of crime if they were not vigilant but that this was a “normal” part of being in a big city.

Asked what might happen to a tourist who got lost and wandered into the back streets of Saint-Denis, local man Ridha shook his head and said “may God protect them”.

“The question would be ‘what are they doing there?’ they should stay in the [main streets],” he added.

Saint-Denis has been home to France’s national stadium since 1998 but is also notorious for having one of the highest crime rates in Europe.

Two years ago it made headlines after disorder involving locals and football fans, who had travelled for the Champions League Final between Liverpool and Real Madrid, delayed the kick-off in the showpiece event.

To avoid a repeat of those chaotic scenes, which saw the police receive severe criticism and caused serious embarrassment for the government’s Ministry of the Interior, the area has been flooded with armed police officers for the Olympics.

The Express saw officers from several different branches of the police stopping young men, checking their IDs and eyeing up any other potential flashpoints.

Military police held rifles aloft as they marched through the streets of Saint-Denis in camouflage fatigues, whist national officers with tasers and pepper-spray canisters attached to their stab-proof vests prowled the sidestreets in aviator sunglasses.

Ridha and his friend Salah, who were sat drinking coffees in the area behind the Saint-Denis Cathedral, less than a mile from the stadium, said they were used to having a heavy police presence in the area and seeing displays of strength. Although they admitted the number of officers was high.

“It’s normal to see lots of armed police officers,” Salah said. “There are many coming in from abroad not just French officers, especially for the games.”

The pair advised tourists to be vigilant for thieves and muggers, although they didn’t believe it was to any greater extent than in other countries.

“This is normal,” Salah continued. “It’s a part of daily life, like in any capital city. It happens everywhere.”

However, the Saint-Denis resident felt that the disorder which surrounded the Champions League final was in part a result of the behaviour of some fans in the build-up to the game, which he claimed antagonised the local population.

“Lots of them came, they drank a lot and did a lot of vandalism. That caused problems,” Salah added.

“During the World Cup 2022, in Qatar, alcohol was not permitted and as a result there was less violence.”