An Angus woman has given an account of the night a gang of ”fearless kids” tussled with police in the street where she lives.
Linda Thomson said she was keeping watch for damage to her car as groups of teenagers roamed West High Street in Forfar. She said she was ”horrified” to see a woman pushed to the ground and teenagers become more and more aggressive as police became involved.
Ms Thomson became aware of a noise outside her home at about 11pm on Friday, and looked on for another two hours as a gathering of up to 40 youths threatened to spiral out of control.
It is thought the crowd formed around a ”territorial dispute” as Kirriemuir children bussed in to meet Forfar youngsters.
”I was watching from my window as all these kids were going past,” Ms Thomson said. ”I had my car keyed only a few months ago and as it seemed to be children there was nothing I could really do.
”So I was out by a lot of money and I keep an eye out in case something like that happens again.
”At 11pm there were groups of several older children walking west along the road, and it seemed to go on forever but it must have been about 40 (teenagers) going past in total.
”When they had all passed by I went out to have a look at the car and then along the road. It looked to me like a teenager pushed over an older woman. She looked like she was one of the parents.”
By this point, around a dozen police officers were talking to the group 50 yards along the road, in front of St Margaret’s Church.
They had thinned the group by about three quarters but more children could be seen entering and leaving the discussion via the Myre car park.
Another witness, who did not wish to be named, said the initial group near the police station was not rowdy but the situation had changed once the majority had left.
Some of those who remained were ”fearless kids” who became confrontational with police and what looked to be a parent of one of the children.
She said: ”I’m keen to point out that the first lot of kids looked like they were there for a reason but they didn’t cause any hassle for anyone.
”Having said that, it’s a really intimidating sight having to approach a crowd like that and pass by it, even on the other side of the road.
”I don’t know why they chose to be there in the first place. It seems a little confrontational.
”There were a few officers there but several cars came in and there were suddenly loads of police. They seemed to be handling it well, but there were a few fearless kids who just kept squaring up to the police and walking along with this exaggerated walk.
”Then a woman got pushed over and it seemed like she was a mum to one of the kids, too.”
At least one youngster was put in cuffs and led away as officers struggled to deal with what was by 12.30am a smaller but more vocal element. It is not known what the catalyst for the group was, or why some of their number appeared so agitated as time wore on.
Inspector Ally Robertson said there were detentions and arrests made on the night, and follow-up investigations over the weekend seem to indicate the incident was contained.
He said: ”Officers will visit the principals of Forfar Academy and Webster’s High School (in nearby Kirriemuir) to enforce the message that policing in these situations is robust.
”There were some detentions, we took the children to their parents, and also arrests on the scene. When you’ve got children under 16 involved, the parents must be made aware they are responsible for the whereabouts of their youngsters.”
Mr Robertson said all available officers attended to make sure the scene was moved along then cleared, as the initial crowd was directly opposite a retirement home.