A UK street has been highlighted by a local as somewhere people allegedly both have sex and cook up heroin.
The congregation has led to one resident raising fears over the health and safety of vulnerable people in Gloucester, with the same member of the public frequently voicing their concerns to the police. The activity on Southgate Street is reported by GloucestershireLive to feature in call-ins received by officers both due to concerns over anti-social behaviour and the welfare of the people sleeping rough on the street.
The person making the call-in said they had seen a spike in the number of people drinking in the area. They will remain anonymous but were shocked to see people in a tent cooking heroin in an alleyway down the street.
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They said: “Street drinking has always been a problem in the city centre, but now it is getting worse. Agencies should have done something about this a long time ago, but I think now the horse has bolted, and it is going to be a struggle to do something about the street drinking and antisocial behaviour.
“I have seen people injecting and having sex on Southgate Street. Further up the street in an alleyway, I have seen people in a tent cooking up heroin. People just do not believe what they are seeing. I feel agencies are just brushing it under the carpet.”
A Gloucestershire Police spokesperson said: “Police work closely with partner agencies, including Gloucester City Council, Solace and homeless charities such as Streetlink and P3, to engage with vulnerable people and ensure they are provided with the help that they need.
Members of our community rightly expect to go about their lives safely, free from the fear that they could be subjected to anti-social behaviour (ASB).
"Officers will always look to engage and support vulnerable people in the first instance. However, when necessary, they will take enforcement action, such as Criminal Behaviour Orders and ASB Injunctions.
"During the summer months, officers from the Neighbourhood Policing Team took part in Operation Ebrius alongside City Protection Officers, Solace and the City Council. The operation, which aimed to tackle ASB and street drinking in the city centre, resulted in 1,302 offers of support and the seizure of 563 vessels of alcohol.
"Following this, the number of anti-social behaviour (ASB) incidents in the city centre reported to the police dropped."The Neighbourhood Policing Team is now looking to run a similar operation in December which will see an increase in patrols to tackle ASB.
"We would ask that anybody who experiences anti-social behaviour reports it using the online form, so that we can take the appropriate action and direct people to the correct support: If there is a crime in progress at the time of calling, please ring 999."
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