Disorder in streets of P¯atea keeps police busy

An increase in disorder on the streets of a small Taranaki town is keeping police on high alert.

Acting police senior sergeant Andrew Russ said there had been a hike in disturbances in Pa¯ tea from youths who were loitering unsupervised in the streets after dark. The behaviour of the youngsters, aged from about eight to 18 years old, had become increasingly antagonistic and had been noticed by both police and community members, he said.

‘‘We’re talking about disorder and that kind of behaviour that’s upsetting the rest of the community,’’ he said.

‘‘They’re abusive towards passersby and they’re abusive to our community patrollers who are volunteers out there doing something for the community.’’

Russ said the south Taranaki town has two police officers who were aware of what was happening and were doing what they could to deal with the situation.

He hoped the behaviour and the late night wandering would curtail once school went back but noted the increase began before the holidays.

‘‘Parents need to keep them at home, basically, and know where they are because kids roaming the streets without any supervision end up getting into trouble.’’

Meanwhile, a handful of parents in Pa¯ tea have taken to a community Facebook page to share their concerns of violence and bullying among the town’s youth. One poster said she was concerned for the children’s safety and alleged a group of teenagers were encouraging fights between kids aged eight and 10.

She said others were recording the violence and uploading it to social media websites.

‘‘The peer pressure to fight or get a hiding is ridiculous,’’ the post read. ‘‘I’ve spoken to concerned parents who agree this needs to stop.’’ Russ said while police hadn’t received reports of any such incidents he was aware there was a concern for the children’s safety among parents in the town.

He encouraged people to report any incidents to police. ‘‘If we don’t know about it we can’t do anything to fix it.’’