'˜Old Portsmouth is lawless' '“ fury as annual blight of Hot Walls youths leaping into Solent adds to catalogue of misbehaviour
The catalogue of misdemeanours raised by besieged locals is said to have spilled over into violence, including a vicious attack recently when a group of German tourists with their teacher were set upon by a baying mob of drunks yobs.
Earlier in the summer residents said there was a brawl involving 150 teenagers from different areas of the city '” including girls '” who had arranged to meet over social media and fight out their differences. On another occasion a teenage girl reportedly threw a used tampon in the face of a woman who asked her to stop smoking cannabis in the public toilet.Â
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdAttempts to quell the nuisance behaviour has resulted in a multi-agency response including Hampshire police, Portsmouth City Council, Hampshire Fire Service and coastguards as they attempt to keep a lid on the problems.Â
But residents feel not enough is being done. One said: '˜Old Portsmouth is a lawless and unregulated zone.Â
'˜I witnessed a horrific attack outside the square when a drugged woman was  punching various people in the head.'Â
Another added: '˜It all sounds very nice having new CCTV, extra patrols and surgeries but at the end of the day it means absolutely nothing if you don't implement them. Is it going to take a serious injury before they wake up to it?'
Sgt Rob Sutton, who used to be on the beat in Old Portsmouth, said: '˜If we move them we are just moving the problem to a different area. Having a feature like the Lido would help.'