Drunken yobs are targeted (From Stroud News and Journal)

Drunken yobs are targeted

A police anti-yob operation netted seven arrests as they mounted a crackdown on drunken weekend brawls in Stroud town centre.

Six of the men, mostly in their 20s, have been charged with public order offences after the town's CCTV system captured two fist fights over the May bank holiday weekend.

A total of nine suspects were identified during the anti-thuggery drive, codenamed Operation Springboard, and enquiries are continuing into the brawls.

Police officers hailed the operation as a success and said it highlighted the importance of the CCTV system in identifying offenders.

"These lads are idiots," said police sergeant Garrett Gloyn.

"We have CCTV operators on duty all night on Friday and Saturday night to deal with just this type of incident.

"They are extremely foolish to do this underneath the cameras."

The six men who have been charged, all of whom live locally, will now appear before magistrates in around six weeks time.

As part of their bail conditions, police have imposed a curfew between 9pm and 6am to prevent them hitting the streets late at night.

Stroud district councillor and deputy mayor John Marjoram applauded the arrests but called on the authorities to tackle the root causes of yob culture.

"I welcome it but I just think we have got to look deeper at the issue which are actually generating this," he said. "I think we have all got to take responsibility for this as a community - we cannot say it is just them and not us."