Council CCTV van is petrol bombed by estate youths

Teenage gangs ran amok in Pilton, smashing car windows and taunting police officers in a night of violence in the housing scheme.

Locals claim the trouble was sparked by the arrest of a 14-year-old boy for burglary, enraging youths in the area.

The disorder culminated in a gang of six or seven youths aiming a petrol bomb at a CCTV van in Ferry Road Drive at 8.30pm on Friday, with terrified council workers still inside.

The petrol bomb hit the van but failed to set fire to it, instead igniting on the ground nearby.

The windows of the van were also smashed by missiles, believed to be stones.

The CCTV van was in the area after security problems on a nearby building site.

Pilton has been plagued with youth disorder, with reports of underage drinking, drug dealing, gang fights, arson attacks and burglaries.

A local shopkeeper said: "The police know who these kids are but when they are arrested they're back on the streets after a few hours. Most of the problems are in the early hours of the morning, mostly on Fridays and Saturdays. They hang about drinking, fighting, smashing windows. If you did a survey of people who live here, 95 per cent would tell you they've had a car or house window broken.

"On Friday, car windows on Ferry Road Drive were smashed around the time the petrol bomb was thrown. The estate can be really bad and there is also a big drug problem. The kids fight each other, commit burglaries, everything."

Another local businessman, who asked not to be named, said: "I heard it was the arrest of a 14-year-old boy for breaking into a woman's house which kicked the whole thing off.

"The police were down investigating it and I think some of his mates were not happy about it. It started after he was lifted, so I've been told."

Blocks of flats near Ferry Road Drive are said to be among the hotspots for youth disorder. The grounds are monitored by CCTV pylons overlooking the buildings. Most of the culprits are thought to be 15 or 16 years old but children as young as ten are also believed to be involved.

A Ferry Road Drive resident, who has lived in Pilton for more than 30 years, said: "It's a rough place but it's been like this for a long time. I don't think its any worse now.

"They hang around the flats mostly and cause trouble.

"I didn't hear about what happened on Friday but it doesn't surprise me."

A council spokeswoman said the CCTV van was in the area as part of a "pre-planned operation" after problems with the security of a nearby building site.

She said: "There have been problems with building site safety and general vandalism at the site. The CCTV central monitoring system operates always with full knowledge of the police.

"The vans are operated by one of three neighbourhood response teams who work with local housing officers to address antisocial behaviour issues."

City leader Donald Anderson said the forces of law and order would not be intimidated out of doing their job.

He said: "They were trying to scare off the people who were there to deal with antisocial behaviour.

"The message we have to send out is that we won't back off under any circumstances. We will tackle antisocial behaviour and crime wherever it arises."

A police spokesman appealed for witnesses to the incident.

Two 15-year-olds have been charged with reckless conduct in relation to the CCTV van incident and were expected to appear at Edinburgh Sheriff Court today.