A gang of feral youths have been banned from Torquay town centre after causing havoc with shoppers. Members of the public have reported being threatened, swore at and assaulted by a group of up to ten children riding around on bikes.
One person posted on line that she will never return to Torquay after being followed by a group of four boys aged about 14 or 15 who verbally abused her elderly mother then kicked her disabled husband. Torquay Police have now acted by issuing town centre banning orders.
Police said: “Our Neighbourhood Support Team have been dealing with a group of youths on push bikes who have been causing issues in the town centre recently.
“We have seized two push bikes and two mobile phones from young people in the town who had been part of a group causing nuisance in the town over the last few days. These young people were then dispersed from the town centre for 48 hours and taken home to their parents. If they return, they will be arrested.
“We will not tolerate this sort of behaviour in our town and will use our powers to remove individuals and seize property from them if needed.”
There have been widespread reports online of youths riding around the town centre and abusing shoppers. Others have reported seeing the group playing chicken in front of buses and cars.
After one encounter with the group, during which she was swore at and harassed, a holidaymaker posted: “Please be careful when in Torquay town. I can honestly say their behaviour was unbelievable and I will never return to Torquay it’s totally put us off.”
Phones and bikes have been seized by police in Torquay
(Image: Torquay Police)
Many people have blamed a lack of parental discipline. Others have warned they could cause a road accident. But some have said the behaviour is just ‘kids having fun’ and the problems in Torquay are small compared to larger towns and cities.
Police have used powers under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 to disperse and seize items. Section 35 allows police officers to disperse persons from a specific area to prevent crime and disorder for up to 48 hours.
Section 37 allows police to remove property from individuals if it is reasonably believed that property is likely to be used in behaviour that harasses, alarms or distresses members of the public.
Last month it was reported that a Christmas light display had been destroyed by a group of “feral kids”. The festive Bay of Lights attraction was damaged in the run-up to celebrations.
Organisers, Future Technical Solutions said a number of the new Christmas Trees were damaged after being climbed by a group of children.
A post said: “We have been verbally abused by these feral kids during installation and since after damaging our property. So before moaners complain about certain items not working please understand we are fighting a losing battle. Something needs to be done about this group of kids, they are causing havoc, obviously their parents don’t give a damn!!”