Police are investigating a plot by disgruntled taxi drivers to attack Uber’s headquarters in Amsterdam with ‘bricks, fireworks and Molotov cocktails’.

According to reports in AD, an activist group calling itself WegMetUber (‘Down with Uber’) planned the attack via the encrypted social media network Telegram. The group was set up in February and has around 300 anonymous members.

AD also said it had learned from sources in the Amsterdam taxi trade that the group was started by angry cabbies in the capital who wanted to take a stand against unfair competition from Uber’s online service.

A Telegram message posted on March 2 invited members to storm Uber’s offices at 4pm on March 20. ‘Everyone and everything welcome. Invite anyone who’s ready to make Uber disappear. Bring bricks, fireworks and molotovs!’

The group was also said to include Uber drivers who are unhappy with the company taking a 25 per cent cut of their fares. ‘The customer is king and the drivers are dogs and slaves,’ commented one user.

Amsterdam police spokesman Frans Zuiderhoek said the city’s police division was aware of the messages. ‘A number of possible criminal offences may have been committed, including incitement to trespass on another’s property,’ he said.

A spokesman for Uber told AD that the company was working closely with police and talks were ongoing with drivers to address their concerns.