By Graeme Strachan

HUNDREDS OF the most aggressive and persistent troublemakers and shoplifters have been banned from Dundee shops in the past year.

Banning orders have been slapped on 241 people from retail premises which are part of the Dundee Co- ordinated Anti-Crime Network (DUNCAN) scheme for between six months and a year.

The banning orders have been imposed in response to repeated anti-social behaviour including assault, breach of the peace and shoplifting.

Ages of people who have been banned range from 17 to 54.

The figures were released by the city council under Freedom of Information legislation and show that 106 men were given six-month bans between June 2007 and June 2008 and 41 to women for the same period.

A year’s ban was given to 70 men and 24 women and as recently as last month 12 people were banned from shops involved in the retail scheme.

Convener of Dundee City Council’s economic development committee, Joe Morrow, said, “The first successful exclusion under the DUNCAN scheme was made against a man who persistently broke the rules in a number of business premises in the city.

“That order, along with the others that have followed, have cut down on the amount of anti-social behaviour in retail and other premises in Dundee, with the knock-on effect of making our shopping areas safer and more relaxed for shoppers.

“Exclusion orders are only one of a number of tools at the disposal of members of the DUNCAN project which are helping to maintain the city as a vibrant shopping, business and leisure centre.”

Sandra Cassidy, manager of Jane Norman, one of the store’s involved in the DUNCAN scheme, said being a part of the network was invaluable and made staff feel safer.

“I first got involved with DUNCAN when I was manager of FOPP in the Overgate,” she said. “So I’d known about it by the time Jane Norman had signed up.

“I have to say it’s pretty invaluable getting to know the other retailers and working with them to get to know who the troublemakers are in advance of them coming to your store.

“It’s a good network with all the retailers working together to make the city centre safer, especially working in a centre where there are so many people coming and going.

“It really has proved to be an invaluable tool and it makes us feel safer because we have a lot of younger girls working with us.

“It also gives them more confidence to report someone.”

For a first instance of anti-social behaviour such as stealing, using drugs, assaulting someone or breaching the peace, a warning letter is sent out and the details kept on file.

If there is a second incident the offender’s name is circulated to all DUNCAN members in the scheme’s monthly bulletin, and it is only after a third offence the six-month ban is imposed.

If the exclusion order is breached the length of the ban can be doubled to a year, and if the offending behaviour persists, the DUNCAN team will escalate the matter into the criminal arena and apply to the sheriff court for an anti-social behaviour order. Breaching an ASBO is a criminal offence, which could ultimately lead to prison.

DUNCAN was set up in 2003 to make Dundee city centre a safer and more secure environment where people can live, work and socialise without fear of becoming a victim of crime.