STORY
Merseyside Police has introduced a dispersal zone across Liverpool city centre following a series of reports of antisocial behaviour. The order came into force at 10.30pm on Wednesday 19 August and will remain in place until 10.30pm on Thursday 20 August. It covers a wide area of the city centre and waterfront, as well as Liverpool Lime Street, Edge Hill, Liverpool Central, James Street and Moorfields railway stations.
The order was authorised under Section 34 of the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. It allows officers to direct people suspected of causing, or being likely to cause, crime, nuisance or antisocial behaviour to leave the designated area and prevent them from returning for up to 48 hours. Officers can also seize items, including vehicles, used in antisocial behaviour. Returning to the area after being directed to leave can amount to a criminal offence.
Chief Inspector Christopher Ruane said the measure followed several incidents in the city centre during the week. He said a 16-year-old boy from Liverpool was arrested after being chased into a McDonald’s on Lord Street by a group of youths and was subsequently found with a knife in his jacket. Extra officers are being deployed across the city centre while the dispersal zone remains in force, with police urging parents and guardians to know where their children are and who they are with during the summer period.