Police are on the trail of vandals who have sprayed these unsightly slogans across Colchester town centre.

Walls, public toilets and even a tomb at a graveyard have been defaced with graffiti. Police believe each of the crude designs has been daubed by a different youngster, as yobs typically take pride in creating their own distinctive "tags".

Officers have created a huge picture database so youths caught just once will face questioning over dozens of previous offences. They predict the painstaking collection of photo evidence will bring a wave of arrests in the new year.