A police operation to crack down on the problem of anti social behaviour in Brentwood has been hailed a success.
The week long Operation Joule resulted in around 70 youths being stop checked by police officers which led to four arrests, three for bail warrant offences and one for drug offences.
Police also carried out 20 stop searches on youths checking them for items which may be used to cause damage or steal property and 22 were interrogated about what they were doing and letters were sent to their parents informing them about the operation.
Act Police Sgt, Sean McDermid, of Brentwood Police said officers were very pleased with how well the operation had gone.
He said: "If we feel we need to do it again we can but this first time has gone really well and we are not only pleased with the results but also at getting the message across to the young people of Brentwood.
"A lot of the youths we spoke to understood why we were doing the operation and understood the problems of anti social behaviour which is a positive step.
"We also gained a lot of intelligence from our patrols which we can use in long term strategies."
The operation targeted mainly Pilgrims Hatch, Costead Manor, Brentwood High Street and Hutton Poplars but teams, consisting of 15 officers each day, were able to respond to calls elsewhere in the town if they were needed.
Published Monday June 14, 2004
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article