Southampton District Commander issues statement after ASB causes damage

A statement from the Southampton District Commander has released a statement to residents after anti social behaviour from large groups on Sunday 31 October.

“I wanted to update you on what we are doing following the incidents in Millbrook and Maybush on Sunday evening.”

“Despite there being a dedicated team of neighbourhood officers out on patrol, Sunday evening saw two groups of young people behave in a totally unacceptable way under the guise of Halloween. In total there were 34 incidents reported which included criminal damage, assault, theft and ASB. I have no doubt that those involved know who they are, and the very fact that they ran from officers when challenged suggests they knew what they were doing was wrong.”

“We are now working to identify those responsible for the crimes that were committed. Officers are speaking to witnesses and reviewing available CCTV but to make progress we also need the help of our community, including those parents who may know it was their children involved. I would ask that if you have information as to who may be responsible or any evidence that you believe will help the police enquiry that you ring 101.”

“We know the community were shocked by what they witnessed and we want to reassure them that we are doing all we can to tackle this kind of criminality amongst young people in the area.”

“We have been, and will continue to, proactively look at ways we can prevent young people from becoming involved in crime to begin with and making the decision to go out and cause harm in their neighbourhood. We are working with secondary schools, youth services and the community safety team on this in order to reduce these incidents.”

“I would like to reassure people that as we head into Bonfire night and the weekend, officers from the local neighbourhood team will continue to conduct dedicated patrols in the area.”

If you have any information on the incidents that happened or you know those involved please call Hampshire Constabulary on 101 or you can report anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111