Station a trouble hot spot

GOLD Coast police are cracking down on petty crime and anti-social behaviour at one of the city’s most popular tram stations.

Fed up with what local businesses described as teenage “wannabe gangsters” causing trouble around the Broadbeach South light rail station police conducted a blitz of the area overnight.

Queensland Police data reveals there have been 177 offences in the area surrounding the station in the past 12 months which included drug, theft and good order offences.

“We have noticed there are quite a few teenagers who try to be gangsters near the tram station, which obviously isn’t a good thing,” said a local shop keeper who didn’t want to be identified.

“You see them selling drugs across the road, and this is just in the afternoons.

“Businesses in the area make sure they watch them very closely.”

Broadbeach Acting Senior Sargent Dan Wicks said extra police would be working with transport officers and security guards to take a zero tolerance response to offences.

“We have identified a number of persons causing trouble in the area,” Sgt Wicks said.

“Members of the community deserve to be able to travel and go about their business in a safe environment.

“The objective of the operation is to address criminal offences and anti-social behaviour around this particular tram station following a number of complaints from members of the public and instances of offences being committed.

“We want to send a strong message to the community.”