The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Family ‘shocked’ after gate hurled at window
Amum has spoken of her shock and anger after a children’s stair gate was thrown at their living room window during a night of mayhem in Glenrothes.
The incident happened at Iona Park, in the usually quiet district in the north of the town – just one of a series of incidents to have occurred on Thursday evening.
Several motorists also reported their vehicles being struck by lumps of ice being thrown by a group of a dozen or so youths from a bridge spanning the Western Avenue, while nearby on Huntsman Road, a number of telephone cable boxes were broken into and vandalised.
Sandra Sneath said she was left “shocked” after the missile came through her window.
She added: “The gate was obviously thrown with some force as it broke right through a double-glazed window before hitting and damaging a car parked outside the house.
“Luckily, it didn’t come all the way through otherwise someone would certainly have been injured.
“We had experienced a couple of other incidents the same day including an egg thrown at the house.
“This is usually a very quiet and peaceful area of the town and we’ve never experienced anything like this before in the 24 years we’ve lived here.
“I’m hoping it’s just a reckless act linked to the spate of other incidents which occurred that night as we’ve no reason to have been targeted.”
Denise Wallace from North Glenrothes Community Council said the incidents were “deeply concerning”, adding that she was thankful nobody had been injured.
She said: “We are shocked to hear of damage and distress caused on Thursday evening and we’ve written to both the police and Fife Council’s safer communities team to alert them to the problems.
“Local councillors have also been informed.
“We urge everyone to remain vigilant and to report an subsequent incidents to the police in the first instance.”
The incidents come just days after Fife Council discussed an additional £320,000 to tackle anti-social behaviour which will be part of next month’s budget proposal.
The extra funding would allow officers to address low-level anti-social behaviour complaints at an early stage, prevent escalation and provide support to those affected by the behaviour.
Commenting on the spate of damage caused, Police Sergeant Cheryl Young of the Community Investigation Unit at Glenrothes said: “Antisocial behaviour is always taken seriously and these incidents are still under active investigation.
“We are acutely aware of the upset that any form of anti-social behaviour can have within a community.
“Anyone caught committing crimes of vandalism or malicious damage will be dealt with appropriately.
“We would urge anyone who has any information about any of the incidents to get in touch with us on 101.”
Anti-social behaviour is always taken seriously