The A£300 Defender hoodie makes the wearera€™s upper body invincible to every bullet up to a high velocity rifle, its makers claim.

It was developed by Bladerunner, a London based company which also makes stab-proof tops.

Barry Samms, the owner, said that a mother from Walthamstow, East London, had asked for the Defender after her son had been mugged three times.

a€oeOur current customers range from undercover police officers to concerned parents,a€A he said.

But gun control groups said today that the company was practising a€oeexploitation at its most grotesquea€A. They predicted a rise in gang violence, saying children would buy the hoodie as a status symbol.

Raymond Stevenson, a spokesman for Dona€™t Trigger, an international anti-gun campaign based in Brixton, London, said: a€oeIta€™s not helping kids to provide them with bullet-proof armoury. These companies are just encouraging the escalation of the urban warfare.

a€oeIta€™ll give people the false impression that theya€™re protected and will encourage more aggressive behaviour.a€A

The hoodie weighs one kilo, only slightly more than a normal version. It can be bought with the Bladerunner logo a€" but without it there is no indication of its capabilities.

Mr Samms denied his firm was targeting teenage gang members with the invention. a€oeIta€™s only a hoodie because you cana€™t really put a zip across the front of something bullet-proof,a€A he said.

a€oeAdults wear hoodies too. My mum wears one and you dona€™t see her hanging out on street corners.a€A

But Adrian Davies, a partner in the company, admitted that the item could encourage people to become involved in crime.

a€oeWe dona€™t want to be arming gangs,a€A he told Times Online. a€oeBut we cana€™t investigate everyone who places an order.a€A

Mr Davies said that Bladerunner had received more than 100 emails this morning from people asking about the hoodie. a€oeOur websitea€™s had 3000 hits just on that product,a€A he said.

The hoodie is currently in the prototype stage, but will be on sale in the next four to six weeks, Mr Davies said.