Council and Police close down Armley crackhouse

Leeds City Council and West Yorkshire Police have succeeded in closing a crack house in Armley .

The moves comes after complaints from local residents that they were being plagued by drug-related anti-social behaviour at 54 First Avenue in Armley .

A judge at Leeds Magistrates Court yesterday (Tuesday) granted an application by the council, the police and West North West Homes Leeds (WNWHL) for closure of the property, under Section 2 of the Anti Social Behaviour Act 2003 after a previous hearing had been adjourned.

The property will now remain closed for a period of three months while Leeds City Council applies for possession of the property.

On 21st December 2009 a search warrant was executed at the same address. Two women have been bailed for drug offences.

Local residents continued to report anti-social behaviour around the property with drug users abusing residents, an increase in burglaries in the area and drug users mixing with parents and children at the nearby Castleton Primary school. Used needles have been discarded onto the school playing fields, presenting a serious health risk to children. The pathways leading to 54 First Avenue have also become littered with rubbish and discarded drug paraphernalia, un-capped syringes, citric acid packets and burnt foil.

On Sunday 21st February police again searched the property and the premises was closed temporarily.

Councillor Les Carter, Leeds City Council’s executive board member for Community Safety and chair of Safer Leeds, said:

“This is very good news for local people who have had to live alongside this property and suffer the consequences. It is important people understand that as a council we will not tolerate anti-social behaviour . “

Inspector Mark Bownass, of the West Inner Neighbourhood Policing Team, said:

“This drug den was seriously blighting the lives of local residents and, as soon as we had the evidence we needed, we worked with our partners in the local authority to get it shut down. Local people deserve to live in a safe environment and this latest action demonstrates what we can achieve by working with our partner agencies. We will keep doing all we can to respond to the concerns of the
community and would encourage people to keep telling us about the local
issues that matter most to them.”

Notes to editors:

Safer Leeds is the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP) dedicated to tackling drugs and crime in the city. It is a partnership between a number of local agencies including Leeds City Council, West Yorkshire Police, NHS Leeds, West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue and West Yorkshire Police Authority.


For media enquiries please contact:
Michael Molcher, Leeds City Council Press Office (0113) 224 3937
e-mail michael.molcher@leeds.gov.uk
ENDS