Worthing vadals 'are caught in the act' (From The Argus)

Worthing vadals 'are caught in the act'

2:00pm Monday 5th January 2009

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Police investigating Worthing’s worst ever graffiti blitz have arrested two suspects only 90 minutes into a threeday covert operation to snare the vandals.

They were allegedly “caught in the act” on Friday night after taunting police by scrawling “catch me if you can” and “ha ha”

on the Pavilion Theatre, only yards from a street surveillance camera.

Argus reporter Paul Holden and borough councillor John Rogers joined about a dozen plain-clothed and uniformed officers to patrol the seafront and town centre following repeated tagging attacks, called bombing runs, during Christmas and new year.

And with only an hour-and-ahalf gone, two teenage males, aged 17 and 19, from Worthing, were arrested in the High Street outside Waitrose.

They were first spotted acting suspiciously near Teville Gate by Chief Inspector Howard Hodges, commander of Worthing Police.

Both suspects denied committing any offence and were bailed until January 26 while police studied street camera footage.

Chief Insp Hodges told officers on Operation Graffiti Catcher that the recent outbreak of vandalism was blighting the town.

He said it was having a massive effect on people’s perception of Worthing as a safe place.

The police chief said: “It’s really about getting in there and using your street skills to the best advantage.”

Police responded after hundreds of tags were daubed all over the seafront.

The tags, which included the names Trikz and Pawz, plus a swastika, were sprayed on the Lido, Grafton multi-storey car park, street signs, beach chalets, ice cream kiosks, fishing boats, fishing lockers, the rowing club, toilet blocks, railings, and telephone boxes.

Dozens of pre-tagged stickers were also found during the investigation.

The damage, running into thousands of pounds, was so extensive that council cleaning contractors struggled to keep up. They face weeks of work to remove the scrawl.

Before the police operation Michael Barnard, Worthing Borough Council’s streetscene manager, branded the vandalism mindless.

He said: “At least 200 sqm of graffiti has been removed, but more is going up and we are currently lagging behind.”

After the arrests, Coun Rogers, cabinet member responsible for the seafront, said: “Brilliant! I am extremely pleased. The police have been very responsive.”

East Worthing MP Tim Loughton said: “I don’t know what age the alleged culprits are but I think every effort should be made to name and shame them and to press for a meaningful penalty.

“I think it should include dressing them up in orange boiler suits and making them go round on graffiti-scrubbing duty for the foreseeable future.”

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