Police respond to fearful parents on Northampton estate who are 'scared to let their kids out' to play out after knifepoint robbery
Police have responded to parents in a Northampton neighbourhood who say they are “scared to let their kids play out” after seeing someone “wielding a massive knife”.
Residents in Kings Heath have been questioning an alleged increased police presence on their estate in recent weeks, with some concerned parents asking if it is safe for their children to go outside and play.
One resident asked: “There’s been a lot of police presence here recently. Does anyone have any idea of what’s going on and if kids are safe to go out?”
Another responded: “I wouldn’t personally allow my kids out. Someone was waving a massive knife around on a moped.”
Northamptonshire Police has addressed these concerns saying they are responding to concerns about anti-social behaviour in the neighbourhood
A spokeswoman said: “We’ve recently had a change in patrol patterns to ensure maximum visibility in the Kings Heath area in response to concerns about anti-social behaviour. Essentially, it’s the daily business of making sure we’ve got people in the right place at the key times.”
The spokeswoman added that the reference to the knife-wielding moped incident likely relates to a recent event in North Oval, Kings Heath, on Wednesday (January 8) between 2.30pm and 3pm.
Police say two males, aged between 14 and 16, stole a red Honda moped from a man at knifepoint.
Anyone who was in the area at the time and saw anything that could assist officers, or who has information, CCTV, or dashcam footage, is asked to call 101 or contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously at 0800 555 111, quoting incident number 25000014177.