Portsmouth police to 'continue patrols' after 'series of incidents' in Commercial Road
POLICE will ‘continue patrols’ in the city centre following a ‘series of incidents’.
A dispersal order was issued for Commercial Road, Portsmouth, on Thursday night.
It was in place for 48 hours.
The order meant that anyone who refuses to leave the area when told to by police - or who returns to it - could be arrested.
In a post on Facebook last night, Portsmouth Police wrote: ‘Fratton, Baffins and Nelson Neighbourhood team are on duty this evening. Following a series of incidents on Commercial Road we have been pro-active in our patrols and anti-social behaviour will not be tolerated.
‘We will continue with patrols for the rest of the weekend and hand over to our colleagues.
‘We work close together with all neighbourhood teams in the city to make sure that all priority areas are covered when that particular team is not on duty.’
Staff at the Premier newsagents said that almost every night for months, a group of children - some as young as eight - have been causing trouble, abusing workers, shoplifting, and throwing furniture around.
A supervisor at Greggs says that they have to shut the doors at around 4:30pm each day to try and stop the children from coming in.
She said: ‘The kids are running riot down there. It’s pretty much most nights.
‘They’re coming in, chucking things, they’re stealing, they’re yelling abuse.’