A BOUTIQUE owner says she was trapped by “vegan vigilantes” who protested inside her shop.

Melissa Devabri was alone at the Artemis boutique in Kensington Gardens in North Laine, Brighton, on Saturday when a group from DxE Brighton went in.

The vegan activist group, which stands for Direct Action Everywhere, held a protest there with megaphones because the shop sells fur and leather items.

The protesters held placards which read: “It’s not fashion. It’s violence.”

But Ms Devabri, who has run the shop for the past four and a half years, said she felt like a prisoner on her own during the protest and said other shop owners were now in fear of the group.

She said: “This is not about whether veganism is right or wrong. I was brought up as a vegetarian and I’ve never eaten meat in my life. This is about vigilantes picking on someone when they are on their own.

“I know people have got a right to protest, even about a shop. But I could not go in or out of my shop, they had me imprisoned and other shop owners were too frightened to come out.

“I felt threatened by 30 angry, hungry monsters. Their power has gone to their heads.”

She said she tried to call the police three times after the group refused to leave, but said police told her the case was not a priority.

They only left once her daughter arrived and together they were able to clear the shop.

Ms Devabri said: “I had protesters shouting and screaming at me. I asked them to leave peacefully, they didn’t. I have not been able to go back to work because of the stress and the trauma.

“They say they are non-violent, but this is beyond just getting their point across when they are shouting and screaming abuse at people with a megaphone, that is violent.

“I have a boutique shop like many others in North Laine. We bring tourism to the city and we are part of the community.

“I’m now worried they are going to come back in again this week for another protest.”

Previously, DxE Brighton has staged protests at major supermarkets including at Hove Tesco in Church Road, Hove, at Lidl in Eastern Road, Brighton, and at Waitrose in Western Road, Brighton.

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More recently the group has targeted other businesses in the North Laine area, including at ethical supermarket Hisbe at York Place, and at boutique shops selling leather and fur goods nearby.

DxE Brighton said: "One of our core values is non-violence. We also do not target individuals, we simply speak the truth about what is happening to animals because of consumer demands.

"The victims in these situations are the animals who have faced violence because of these industries.

"We would also like to remind everyone why we take direct action - it is to disrupt the normalised speciesism in our society. We use tactics that previous social justice movements have successfully used to create long term change.

"We are aiming to create a world where every animal is safe, happy and free."

Sussex Police was contacted for comment.