Booze for children seized by police

1:09pm Sunday 28th January 2007

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A massive haul of booze was seized from children as young as 11 years old on the streets of Bolton.

A police operation targeting yobs in the Astley Bridge, Bromley Cross, Breightmet and Tonge Moor confiscated the drink over eight weekends.

It includes 400 containers of alcohol - among them are litre bottles of vodka, cans of strong lager and fortified wine.

Police said the operation had been successful in taking hundreds of litres of booze from youngsters but officers are increasingly concerned about the number of adults buying drink for children.

Some 12 adults were issued with £80 on-the-spot fines for the offences during Operation Pleat.

Police also made 12 arrests for public order offences and challenged 450 youngsters about their presence on the street late at night under stop-and-account powers.

Sgt Leon Jacobs said: "The operation was a great success and a huge amount alcohol was taken off the streets. It is alcohol that could have contributed to a huge amount of nuisance. However, the problem of adults buying for children remains.

"I am appealing directly to those people to consider the harm they are causing."

Police targeted problem areas which had been identified after talks with residents.

Uniformed officers provided a visible deterrent to gangs on the street and plain-clothed officers watched off-licences in a bid to trap adults buying booze for under-18s. Covert cameras were also used to spy on offenders.

Sgt Jacobs added: "During this operation, we have worked closely with residents, Bolton Council and a number of off-licences who have helped us to target the individuals who are causing us problems."