Police called to Black Friday scuffles at Tesco stores

Police have been called to Tesco Extra supermarkets in Scotland after scuffles broke out among shoppers queuing for Black Friday bargains.

Large crowds gathered at the Silverburn store, near Pollok in Glasgow, and Kingsway West store in Dundee, ahead of the sale, which began at midnight.

Worried staff asked police to attend as customers jostled for some of the heavily-discounted goods on sale.

Both stores were closed for a short time. There were no arrests.

Sarah Coubrough wrote on Twitter: "Silverburn shut cos shoppers going mental with the sales. Think I'll stick to the online shopping today."

Online footage

Emma Somers posted: "Police called to the Tesco at Silverburn cause folk are fighting over the bargains for Black Friday."

Police said that those involved in the scuffle had gone by the time they arrived, and that there were no arrests.

Footage from the store shows shoppers pushing and shoving each other as they attempt to grab items from trolleys.

Similar scenes took place at the Tesco Extra in Dundee, with footage of the scuffles being posted online.

A statement from Police Scotland's Tayside division said: "For information the Tesco Extra, Kingsway West, Dundee has been closed at this time due to excessive numbers attending to purchase sale items.

"This decision was made by Tesco staff to ensure the safety of all their customers."

Officers attended other Tesco stores in England and Wales amid reports of crowd surges.

Black Friday, traditionally a post-Thanksgiving discount shopping day in the United States, has become one of the busiest shopping days of the year.

A Tesco spokesman said: "Over 600 Tesco stores have Black Friday offers available in store. In the interest of customer safety a small number of these stores contacted police last night to help control crowds safely and stores are now trading normally".