London Road traders say addicts and drunks are taking over area

9:31am Tuesday 2nd September 2008

By Andy Whelan

A once booming shopping area is being “left to rot” by police and the council as drug dealers and vagrants drive customers away, say traders.

Drug pushers sell heroin in supermarket doorways while addicts inject the drug near a local primary school.

Shopkeepers in London Road, Brighton, also say beggars have attacked them, steal purses from pensioners and intimidate customers.

Desperate businesses have now formed the London Road Traders’ Association demanding Brighton and Hove City Council and Sussex Police take action to improve the area.

The police and the council have welcomed the move. Both say they have been dealing with area’s problems but realise more needs to be done. The group has been formed as two more off-licences open in the road and drug addicts continue to flock to nearby needle exchanges.

Traders have accused the authorities of turning their back on London Road and allowing drug dealers to ply their trade to stop the problem spreading to other parts of the city.

Joy Flowers, who has sent letters to other traders asking them to join the new group, said addicts were injecting by a school.

She said: “I think the police and council have made a decision to contain the problems by allowing it to go on here. It is totally unacceptable and I want to put pressure on the authorities to address the problem seriously and resolve it as quickly as possible before London Road becomes a retail graveyard.”

Azita Dodd, owner of Oki Nami in nearby York Place, is closing the Japanese shop in three weeks because she has been “emotionally drained” by the local louts.

She said: “Last year my husband parked his car outside and refused to give beggars some money, so they kicked him in the chest, chased him and stole his phone.

“I was threatened and told by one drunk outside my shop that if he ever saw me elsewhere he would kill me.”

Traders want more officers on the to deal with shoplifters, and the dealers to be arrested and banned from plying their trade in the area.

Brighton Chief Inspector Laurence Taylor admitted there were problems in the area and welcomed the formation of the association.

He added: “There are certainly issues in the area and that is why we put our resources down there.

“But we need to know who, where and when so we can target our resources effectively.”

The council said it had successfully helped reduce antisocial crime and was working with police to improve the area. A spokesman said: “There is still much to do and are grateful for any information people can give us on substance misuse, crime and antisocial behaviour.”