Two police officers who asked a teenager to pick up some litter she had dropped were attacked by a mob in a suburban high street and punched, kicked, slapped and bitten.

Witnesses said that the two male officers had to use batons to fight off about 30 teenagers who had kicked them to the ground. But two men then joined the attack, one of whom punched an officer in the face, as they shouted insults at the officers.

The extraordinary scene took place in the middle of the afternoon in a high street in Croydon, South London. Local shopkeepers said that the area was plagued by youths and gangs fighting and causing trouble.

The teenager picked up the fast-food wrapper when she was asked – but immediately dropped it on the ground again, the Metropolitan Police said. As the girl and a friend became aggressive towards the officers, a crowd of youths began to grow outside Woolworth’s.

Laven Karim, 19, who works at a nearby shoe shop, said: “All of a sudden, punches were thrown and all the yobs got involved. The girls were biting and kicking. It was disgusting.”

Witnesses said that the crowd kicked the officers on the ground, and the police responded with batons.

At this point, bystanders joined the attack, telling the officers that they “should not attack little girls”.

Then, “one of these older men punched an officer in the face and knocked him to the ground”, said Adeel Ramjaun, 21, an optician. “The crowd had made a semicircle around the officers. It looked like a gladiatorial ring. They were shouting and swearing at the officer. I was gobsmacked. How often do you see a police officer being punched in the face?”

Witnesses also claimed that at one point police used pepper spray on one of the girls.

Police confirmed yesterday that a 15-year-old girl had been arrested at the scene on suspicion of assault, and had been bailed pending further inquiries. Two men aged 34 and 38, both from South Norwood, were also arrested on suspicion of assault and violent disorder. Police have appealed to the public to assist their inquiries, and detectives were examining closed-circuit television footage.

The two officers, aged 34 and 29, are on sick leave suffering from bruising and knee injuries. The 34-year-old officer required hospital treatment for a bite wound.

Speaking on BBC London Radio yesterday, he said that he had feared for his life and called for urgent assistance as the violence broke out.

He said: “She just threw litter on the floor and we asked if she could pick that up. As we walked away, she threw it at us. Then we went back to talk to her. You don’t arrest these people for such a minor offence; it is a complete waste of time.

“It is just amazing and it depresses you, the state of children today – the disrespect, not only for people who might not be in the police but anyone who is older.”

Yesterday there was minimal police presence in the pedestrianised high street. Groups of teenagers in school uniform could be seen walking up and down at various points throughout the day, despite it being a school day.

Local people claimed that the area was plagued by gangs and that young people could identify which gang a youth was in by the colours they wore and the style of their trainers. Retailers said that they often faced trouble from youths milling around outside shops after school and fighting.

Handrit Kukaj, 21, who works in Aldo clothes store in the high street, said: “We get loads of trouble here, especially on Thursdays, when there is late-night shopping. The main problem is the fighting between the different schools.” Reza Joody, 36, who runs a local shoe shop, said: “The kids do whatever they want around here, stealing and shoplifting. They come in the shop and damage and scratch the shoes. What can we say to them? They’re kids.”

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