Hard-working business owners in one town centre say teens have egged shop windows, harassed a vulnerable woman and become increasingly abusive while swigging alcohol concealed in takeaway McDonald’s cups.

One trader – a war veteran – has been told to “go back” to his own country by customers in his own shop, and says thieves are “killing his business”.

These are just some examples of the shocking behaviour blighting Ashford.

In a bid to tackle the yobs, car parks have been blocked off and shops are closing earlier.

But shop owners say the anti-social behaviour has become a real problem with fresh incidents every week.

After refusing to sell alcohol to an underage boy, Ganesh Rai, owner of Global Mart off licence said eggs were hurled at the window of his shop in the lower high street.

“A couple of months ago, really small kids, maybe between eight to 12 years old, came in saying ‘give me vodka’,” he explained.

“They went to the fridge and grabbed alcohol. I said you can’t do that and asked them to leave the store.

“They left and after a few minutes they came back with eggs and threw them at the window. Through the door and they were swearing and shouting.

“There are incidents almost every week.”

Staff from Cafe Express say they once had to intervene after a group assaulted a vulnerable person outside the cafe.

Kay Lal said: “They come in and ask us for takeaway cups to put their alcohol in, or they will go to McDonald’s.

“We have to be strict and not give them anything.

“Around 70% of the time the trouble is between themselves. They get drunk and shout at each other.

“They think nobody can touch them because they are under 18, but one day I had to tell one of the girls off.

“There was a vulnerable lady and the kids, maybe [aged] 14, started to pick on her.

“Parents just let them go out and don’t know what’s happening.”

Two section 34 dispersal orders covering the town centre have been issued this year, including over the Coronation weekend.

It means police can direct individuals to leave the area if they are causing a nuisance.

In 2020, 11 dispersal orders were issued in Victoria ward, which encompasses the town centre.

Since then it has been coming down with six in 2021 and nine in 2022, suggesting lockdowns may have been a factor in the peak.

While agreeing dispersal orders are important, Ali Sasmaz from Cafe Express feels they are not tough enough.

“I think it is a really good idea for police to be able to issue them,” he said.

“But it is a waste of police time because they shouldn’t have to deal with drunk people, or teenagers. They should be dealing with real crime.”

While fellow shop owner Geoff Mathews, from Soundcraft Hi-Fi, welcomes dispersal orders, he feels they would not be needed if there was a stronger police presence in the town centre.

One thing he would like to see rules tightened up on is the use of e-scooters, which he says has become a real problem since the cobbles in the lower high street were ripped out.

It was part of a joint effort between Kent County Council (KCC) and Ashford Borough Council (ABC) to improve the "look and feel" of the town centre as well as "enhancing" safety for pedestrians.

But Mr Mathews says the smoothness of the tarmac “has made safety worse” as teens whiz around on scooters and skateboards, adding: “There is nobody around to pull over these scooters.”

He also feels the vacant Mecca Bingo hall, which has fallen into disrepair, is a huge factor in the behaviour the high street attracts.

“The white elephant, the Mecca Bingo hall, has been empty for seven years so it attracts the trouble,” he said.

“It has had a major effect on people wanting to go shopping in the high street.

“Trouble is also attracted to the bandstand, the fountain and McDonald’s, that’s where anti-social behaviour develops

“If the town had been maintained better over the years, it wouldn’t be this bad.”

But Rabin Gurung, co-owner of Mo Mo Kingdom, believes anti-social behaviour has actually improved compared to recent years, something which figures from a Freedom of Information request by KentOnline reflects.

Anti-social behaviour encompasses a whole host of crimes including nuisance animals, noise complaints, rubbish, problem parking and rowdy gatherings in public.

The most common crimes in this category over the past four years in the town centre have been drunken or rowdy behaviour, nuisance gatherings in public and disputes between neighbours.

In 2019 in the Victoria ward there were 494 incidents of anti-social behaviour, which rose to 627 in 2020, and 687 in 2021.

But in 2022, this dropped to 583 reported incidents.

However, some crimes have seen a rise, including shoplifting, bicycle thefts and possession of weapons.

Shoplifting incidents in the town centre ward have risen from 249 in 2019, to 331 incidents in 2022, an increase of 32.9% across the four years.

Bicycle theft has risen each year from 53 incidents in 2019 to 78 in 2022, a total rise of more than 47%.

Over the past four years, reports of people possessing weapons have risen by 50%, from 22 reports in 2019 to 33 in 2022.

Shop owner Dhan Rogu, from Variety Cash and Carry, in High Street, says shoplifting is a huge issue.

Mr Rogu said: “A lot of people come and shoplift and that’s really killing us, given how difficult things are for small businesses as they are at the moment.

“I think dispersal orders work, but the problem is, police don’t have full power.

“They know police are around but they don’t care.

“I think Ashford is the worst town centre overall for crime.

“I have been abused many times, people telling me to go back to my own country.

“I have served in conflicts for this country. We have risked our lives for this country and these people, we deserve to be here and treated better.”

Mr Rogu thinks there needs to be more of a focus on improving the town centre to bring more trade and investment back, which could improve the situation.

“The other side of town has spaces where people can park after three o’clock but this side doesn’t have that and it’s really killing us,” he said.

“If they opened up free parking after 3pm at this side, it would give us a lot more freedom.”

Ashford Borough Council says it has introduced a number of measures to help improve safety and reduce anti-social behaviour.

“A lot of people come and shoplift and that’s really killing us...”

Mirrors were installed in alleyways across the town centre last year, paid for from a share of £550,000 from the Safer Streets fund.

They were mounted to walls in Taylors Passage next to WHSmith, St John’s Lane – the cut-through between the Vicarage Lane car park and the ex-Mecca Bingo site – and the passage next to By the Tank Cafe in Park Mall.

However the majority of the mirrors have since been vandalised and the mounts on the walls now sit empty.

ABC says replacements are on their way.

A council spokesperson said: “We work with our partners in the community safety partnership, including Kent Police, to develop and implement strategies to protect our communities from crime and to help people feel safe.

“Ashford town centre has a Public Spaces Protection Order that allows us to tackle anti-social behaviour which takes place in a specific area, covering particular activities, meaning that anyone carrying them out in an area under one of these orders can be prosecuted or issued with a £100 fixed penalty notice.

“The innovative Ashford Streetwise app identifies the areas and routes in the town centre with the best safety provision and the town centre also offers a network of Safe Spaces - premises people can go to if they need help and support when out in the town centre (look out for the window sticker or find them on the app).”

Ashford District Commander Ch Insp Sarah Rivett said: “Our statistics show that reported anti-social behaviour has fallen in Victoria ward, which includes Ashford town centre, in the last year and I believe that is due, at least in part, to the hard work of my officers.

“Despite the fall however, we are not complacent and continue to build on our work with partner agencies and businesses to help ensure the town is a safe place to live and work.

“Ashford has a very proactive town centre team and we have worked with the borough council to introduce a range of community safety schemes over the last year.”

She says the police want to hear from the community and will continue to hold events, the most recent of which was a “walk and talk” event in the town centre last week, when officers and representatives from partner agencies had the chance to discuss issues with community members.

Ch Insp Rivett added: “Dispersal orders are one of the many tools open to us to help prevent anti-social behaviour and they allow us to move on and disperse anyone causing trouble in the town centre before any potential offences take place.”