Village vigilantes threaten gangs with beatings

CAMERON SIMPSON
The Herald
Jan. 12, 2007

Residents of a crime-ridden rural village have threatened to carry out punishment beatings on teenage troublemakers amid claims the police are ignoring their plight.

A group has delivered an anonymous letter to police, warning they are going to take the law into their own hands.

The vigilantes are threatening to patrol the streets in a van and carry out attacks on youths they blame for a spate of vandalism and petty crime in Menstrie, Clackmannanshire.

They say teenagers fuelled by drink and drugs are the village's "untouchable generation" and accuse police of being unwilling to tackle the problem.

Menstrie, with a population of just 2000, enjoys an idyllic location at the foot of the Ochil Hills. It boasts a historic castle and is overlooked by the spectacular Broomhall baronial mansion.

However, locals say their lives have been blighted by gang violence and vandalism.

The letter warns: "For some time now we have watched the younger generation of Menstrie wreak havoc.

"From the breaking of church walls, breaking into local shops, destruction of council property, the constant littering of plastic bags and smashed glass bottles, harassment of local residents, arson attacks and the beating of bus drivers.

"In the year 2007 this is going to stop. We are taking our own action. We know who they are, where they live and who their parents are."

Other villages have gone down different routes. In 2005 Mid Calder, which lies 12 miles west of Edinburgh, became the first in Scotland to resort to the Antisocial Behaviour (Scotland) Act of 2004 to deal with teenagers causing a nuisance. It allowed police to ban teenage troublemakers from congregating after dark at weekends.

However, the letter points to the success two years ago of a group of vigilantes in nearby Alva. It states: "A group of villagers travelled around Alva carrying out punishment beatings. We seem to recall this was very successful.

"We want to see more police patrols in Menstrie, the splitting-up of large congregated gangs and tougher sentences passed down. We are not asking the police, we are telling them to put a stop to the uncontrollable youths in Menstrie. Otherwise we will act on your behalf."

Superintendent Gavin Buist, of Central Scotland Police, said the whole tone of this letter caused him great concern. "It amounts to an assertion by the writers that they are going to implement vigilante-style patrols," he said.

"I cannot over-emphasise that we will not condone this sort of self-initiated behaviour. Anyone who takes the law into their own hands runs a great risk of being arrested themselves. I would be extremely surprised if the majority of the people in Menstrie would accept that this was a reasonable way to run the village."

Mr Buist said his officers had experienced an upsurge in calls about unruly youths in Menstrie recently. However, he insisted the force had increased patrols in the village, as well as a dedicated disorder unit to crack down on troublemakers across Clackmannanshire.

Local councillor Janis Paterson said that turning to vigilantism was not the answer. She added: "Vigilantism will just instigate more violence. I think it is more important that people come to me or the police with information about what is happening so we can look at the best way of dealing with it."

One resident, who did not want to be named, said: "A few years ago this was a quiet wee place where you could walk down the street at night without any hassle. But gangs from all the other local towns gather here with the local yobs and cause havoc.

"The police don't seem to be able or willing to do anything so people are at the end of their tether.

"It is no surprise to me that people are threatening to take the law into their own hands. It will maybe make the neds think twice about stepping out of line if they are likely to get battered."












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