Beggar with £500 iPhone

Police probe into streetlife

Police investigations have found that some of those begging on the streets of Stirling are making “hundreds of pounds” from the practice.

Details of the probe was revealed in a police report tabled at the latest meeting of Mercat Cross and City Centre Community Council.

Police began their investigations amid complaints about antisocial behaviour in the heart of the town.

Numbers of people begging in the city centre increased during the run-up to Christmas with people asking shoppers for money in Murray Place, Port Street and Upper Craigs.

The report, compiled by the area’s community police officers, tells community councillors: “Due to our persistence, we have made great inroads into `cleaning up’ Stirling city centre in relation to persons sleeping rough, drinking alcohol, causing a general nuisance and disorder.

“Some of the main offenders are currently on bail (on condition) not to enter Stirling City centre during retail hours and some are ... banned from entering the city centre at any time.

“We continue to have persons begging and appearing to be homeless. I can confirm that no person begging in the in the city is homeless. They have a home provided to them by the council.

“The persons who are begging are, in fact, making hundreds of pounds a week and are spending this on drugs and alcohol. Some even have £500 iPhones.

“It continues to be our intention to clamp down robustly on these individuals every day we are on duty.”

Inspector Donna Bryans, of Police Scotland, knew of the comments made in the report and was aware of one individual who, while begging, was pretending to be homeless but had been allocated a council flat.

She added: “The officers believe the comments made in the report are right.They are in the city centre all the time and were working there during the entire month of December. They had a lot of interactions during that month.”

Elsewhere in the police report, covering December and January, the police said there had been nine reported breach of the peace incidents, seven of which had been detected.

Persons had also been identified and charged in connection with two raciallyaggravated breaches of the peace, and of the seven acts of vandalism in the area, three had been detected and inquiries were continuing into the others.

City centre CCTV was also proving an aid to policing, said the officers. It had helped detect people purchasing alcohol for consumption by youths who were underage. Alleged assaults during that period numbered 16. Suspects had been charged in 12 of the cases.

Inroads made into cleaning up Stirling