Couple evicted from crack den (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Couple evicted from crack den

POLICE are hopeful that an eviction of two known drug addicts will help solve the problems faced by the residents of Manchester Road.

Officers arrived at 77 Manchester Road at 10.30am yesterday to help bailiffs to repossess the premises and evict the two occupants.

Police said they had been watching the activities that had been taking place and were considering taking action.

But the landlord, Chris Sawyer, approached the courts and obtained a county court eviction order to force the pair out.

A 34-year-old woman and a 47-year-old man were escorted from the premises by police.

Acting Sergeant Matt Barnett said the pair had caused a lot of problems in the community.

"We knew that they were abusing drugs and were involved with prostitution in the area," he said.

"There have been a lot of complaints about this pair in recent months."

But he said that police had been unable to act sooner due to lack of evidence.

"Most people knew what was going on but the residents were too scared to speak out," he said.

"The occupant threatened them with violence and they were too frightened of reprisals if they came forward."

So police spoke to residents anonymously to build up the evidence they needed.

On Tuesday officers searched the building and found drug-related items such as crack pipes.

They also found pornographic material.

Bailiffs have now boarded up the building to secure it and the keys will be returned to Mr Sawyer.

Officers also helped to evict a resident from 65 Manchester Road.

They were given until 2.30pm yesterday to remove their belongings from the property.

Acting Sergeant Barnett said police hoped this would help ease residents' concerns.

But he said the police still wanted people to come forward if there were more problems.

"If any resident is experiencing problems relating to drugs or prostitution then we would like to hear about it," he said.

To report a problem contact Acting Sergeant Barnett at Swindon police on 01793 528111.

Stephanie Tye