Children aged 13 caught in blitz on underage drinkers

Children as young as 13 have been found drinking alcohol in the streets of the Capital in a crackdown by police.

Seventy litres of alcohol were seized from groups of underage youths in the parks and lanes of Leith over five nights.

One shopkeeper in Leith Walk has been charged for selling alcohol to a 15-year-old boy following the campaign.

Sergeant Mark Rennie, from the Safer Communities Unit at Leith said: "The message is clear. Check for proof of age, and if you are in any doubt, do not sell the alcohol.

"It is disappointing that, despite receiving a visit by the police and the council highlighting the issue, a staff member from the shop was charged less than ten days later. Hopefully this will provide a wake-up call for other off-sale premises in Leith and highlight to shopkeepers that officers and staff from the council are paying attention to this issue.

"We often have to deal with the problems that result from underage drinking in the area and the work we are now doing to educate youngsters at schools, confiscate alcohol and target off-sale premises is designed to ensure we make a lasting impact."

The initiative, which involved police visiting notorious youth drinking dens, mainly around Leith Walk, took place on Saturday nights over the past two months. Last Saturday alone, 20 litres of alcohol were seized.

Sgt Rennie said: "It's quite alarming. The main group we target are 13 to 16-year-olds.

"We know where they are likely to go and at what times, and going to those areas has led us to know a bit more. It's not a surprise to us because we know alcohol is a problem from the amount of complaints we get from residents."

Police and council officials visited 35 off-licences in Leith and circulated advice to staff on the need to ask for age identification when selling alcohol to younger people.

This was followed up by patrols by plain clothes officers that led to the detection of the Leith Walk offender.

The police sergeant added: "It's not just shopkeepers selling to underage drinkers we want to stop. We need to put a halt to over 18s buying alcohol for younger folk. We need to reduce not only the availability of alcohol to youngsters, but also the demand for it in their own minds through education."

Leith councillor Marjorie Thomas, who is also convener of the licensing board, said that underage drinking was a problem in the area.

"I'm delighted the police have been successful in seizing some of this and it just emphasises how big an issue it is," she said.

"Certainly a lot of young people in Leith are aware of it as a problem and have acted accordingly. As a licensing board we will be treating the sale of alcohol to underage youngsters as one of our priorities. It's not just a problem for Leith, it's everywhere."

Scotsman