POLICE have declared a winter war on crime and launched a major crackdown on town-centre troublemakers.
Revellers in Fraserburgh were targeted during a weekend operation aimed at making the port safer in the run-up to the busy festive season.
The wide-ranging approach primarily focused on people trying to smuggle drugs and knives into pubs, clubs and hotels.
But it also doubled as a purge on antisocial behaviour, traffic offences and drinking on the streets, which is outlawed in Fraserburgh.
Sgt Sam Buchan said: “It’s important that we try to be in the right place at the right time. A minor breach of the peace detected at 10pm can turn into a serious assault by 2am.”
An extra 20 police, including special constables, traffic and plain clothes officers, were drafted in to help local staff with the launch of Operation Rhylstone, which is likely to be repeated in other parts of north Aberdeenshire, including Banff and Peterhead.
The scheme involved officers taking to the streets with drug-detecting kit worth £60,000, the first time such machinery had been used in the area for more than four years.
The portable itemiser scans simple hand swabs to pick up any traces of banned substances.
In a partnership with police, licensees agreed that all customers had to be checked by officers at the doorway or they would be denied entry.
Plain-clothes police were also on hand to look for anyone acting suspiciously outside bars and clubs, especially those who tried to disappear into the shadows when they saw other revellers being checked.
Anyone who tested positive was taken into a nearby incident unit and searched. Handheld metal detectors were used to search them for weapons.
A total of seven people were charged with assault and breach of the peace offences, while two road traffic crimes were detected – including one “very drunk” driver.
Over the weekend, about 200 people were swabbed outside pubs and clubs. Those who tested positive were searched, but no drugs were recovered.
Fraserburgh-based Sgt Buchan, who co-ordinated the operation, said the ultimate aim was to make the town centre a safer place for the majority of revellers by apprehending those who risked spoiling it for others.
“If someone is out and intent on causing mayhem, they need to be locked up before the situation escalates,” he added.
“That’s why we have been focusing on problem hot spots in and around the town centre area.”
Inspector Allan Brown added: “This is a good time of year to get the message out there. We want people to enjoy their time in the run-up to the Christmas period and not have it spoiled. This is all about keeping people safe, which is the main goal for Police Scotland.
“There is concern amongst the local population that they could lose out to the central belt because of the new single force.
“There was a fear that a bias would pull staff away from here. So it’s great to get these staff here and show the community that it’s not just Glasgow and Edinburgh that gets this kind of attention.
“The safety of the people of Fraserburgh is my concern and I have to make sure I use everything at my disposal to achieve that.”
Fraserburgh councillor Charles Buchan, who joined police for part of Saturday night’s operation, said he was impressed by what he saw.
He added: “I think it’s fantastic that police here are able pull in resources to help make the town a safer place.
“I have no doubts that this exercise is going to make a big impact,” added the councillor.