A DRIVER has slammed Essex Police for categorising him and his friends as “boy racers”.

Severalls Industrial Estate in Colchester is renowned for car meet-ups and has been the subject of a police dispersal order.

In May, police invoked powers allowing them to move on boy racers who they believed were turning the industrial estate into a race track.

Police returned to the site again on Sunday night and Paul Spencer said he was caught up in the confrontation.

He said he was in the area visiting friends when police blocked off Smeaton Close and started “threatening to arrest people”.

He said: “There must have been about 150 cars there.

“We were doing absolutely nothing wrong. Police started blocking the exit off.

“My car has been damaged where police were looking inside it. They scratched the roof and I reported it.”

Mr Spencer said car cruising did happen in the area but said he was not taking part in any event or activity.

He said: “They are taking it out on everyone, it’s not fair.

“A lot of people bring their cars there but I go there to talk to my friends.

“We are all being labelled as boy racers.

“I’m 27 and I don’t go racing my car up and down.

“They were constantly threatening to arrest us, I left my car there in the end.”

He said police arrived at about 8pm on Sunday and he left the area by 8.30pm.

Ward councillor Gerard Oxford has raised concerns about antisocial behaviour in the area for a long time.

The open-ended dispersal order on the site bans any vehicles stopping there.

Gerard said: “The dispersal order is there anyway so cars shouldn’t be there.

“Police are well within their rights to tell people to move on.

This is a blanket ban and any kinds of gatherings are covered.”

We contacted Essex Police for a comment. A police spokesman said: “We received reports a vehicle had been damaged in Brunel Way, Colchester, on Sunday at about 8.30pm “Our investigation is ongoing.”

Anyone with information is asked to call Colchester LPT on 101.