A JOINT initiative to crack down on rowdy behaviour on trains and anti-social behaviour at railway stations has been hailed a success. Officers from the Petersfield and Whitehill safer neighbourhoods teams combined with officers from the British Transport Police and Hampshire County Council's accredited community safety officers to conduct the operation over three weekends in May. Railway stations at Petersfield, Liss and Liphook were targeted during Operation Mallard, which aimed to crack down on anti-social behaviour, criminal damage and under-age drinking. Operation Mallard was set up in response to a rise in reported incidents of anti-social behaviour and criminal damage on the trains and at railway stations and their surrounding roads, with 39 incidents reported in April. Following the launch of the initiative, reported incidents have more than halved and officers have confiscated alcohol from 40 under-age drinkers. The alcohol ranged from single cans to bottles of wine and spirits and the police have written to the parents of children involved. Petersfield safer neighbourhood sergeant Stuart Tripp said: "This is the second police operation this year that has seen a considerable amount of alcohol seized from under-age drinkers that have been targetted. "Shops that supply alcohol were also tested with mystery shoppers in the early part of this year and on the whole they faired well. Some individuals have received on-the-spot fines of £80 for supplying alcohol to young people in Liss and Petersfield. "Further local operations and mystery shopper tests are already in the pipeline for the summer and the emphasis will be placed on those people who supply the alcohol to under-age drinkers." Sgt Tripp added: "We were extremely pleased with the response from the public and were encouraged that there were so few incidents reported during the period of the operation." Sergeant Philip Shore added: "The operation was a success. The first week we were really busy, and then we saw a decrease in anti-social behaviour as word spread. "Before the operation took place we had a number of incidents of anti-social behaviour, under-age drinking and criminal damage. "We thought that if we worked together we could achieve a lot more, and targetted specific areas at different times and days. And we dealt with any offences robustly." "We seized alcohol and poured it away and from the thanks that we received from staff at the railway stations, obviously there were issues and we dealt with them," he said. For more details about the work being done by safer neighbourhoods teams in East Hampshire, visit http://www.hampshire.police.uk">www.hampshire.police.uk.
