TWO hours after a gang of yobs started throwing stones at his windows, Sydney Davis got so fed up he chased them away with a lump of wood.

At that precise moment the police arrived outside his home in Magnolia Court, Pinehurst West, and arrested him.

Mr Davis' wife Pauline had called the police earlier to deal with the young troublemakers, but he was shocked to find he was the one put in the cells on Wednesday night.

"They were throwing stones at my house and my windows. There were about 10 of them.

"I chased them down the road with a big stick. As a result I was arrested, but they didn't arrest any of them.

"This is an on-going thing. They are there every night of the week.

"I have seen cars being damaged and windows being put through.

"The police are doing nothing. In the last eight months our windows have been smashed five times.

"There is a dispersal order, but when these kids see the police they are off through the alleyways. The police have got no chance of catching them.

"My wife called the police at 6 o'clock.

"They just kept on throwing stones through my back gate.

"I left the back door open to stop them smashing it. I have two kids and if one of those stones hit them it could have caused some really nasty damage.

"Suddenly a really big rock came crashing into the kitchen.

"I just grabbed the stick, which was the nearest thing I could find, and chased them off.

"The police turned up just as I was chasing them."

Retired Mr Davis said Pinehurst West was under constant attack from gangs of unruly teenagers and he feared for the safety of his sons Peter John and Jimmy Lloyd.

"One of my neighbours had a seven-month-old baby in their kitchen, when a brick came through the window," he said.

"It showered glass across the baby's face.

"Something needs to be done to stop these kids. They are out there almost every night."

Police patrols were stepped up in Pinehurst after two houses were torched in Beech Avenue, as part of a spate of crime in January.

Officers' shift patterns were changed so they would be in the neighbourhood at the times when the most trouble was occurring.

The neighbourhood policing team was also looking into working with the council to close off some of the alleyways in a bid to prevent crime and disorder.

Swindon police confirmed that Mr Davis was charged with possession of an offensive weapon in a public place but no juveniles were arrested during in relation to the incident.