WILTSHIRE Police has imposed a 48-hour Section 35 Dispersal Order for Devizes town centre following several fights.

It came into force at 5pm yesterday (Thursday, November 17) and will end at 5pm on Saturday, November 19.

It comes after two major disturbances in the town, one of which saw a brawl involving around 20 people on Thursday night.

It followed another incident, believe to be linked, on Wednesday.

The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald:

A police spokesman said: “A Section 35 order gives police officers and police community support officers the power to exclude a person from an area for a period of up to 48 hours with the authority of an Inspector.

“It was reported that approximately 20 people were fighting. Police attended and one male needed to attend the hospital for treatment of his injuries.

“This is believed to be linked to a disorder that took place near the Market Place yesterday (16/11) where two persons were arrested for Actual Bodily Harm and one person taken to hospital with head injuries.

“We would like to reassure the Community that Wiltshire Police are robustly addressing this issue.

“Extra patrols are being made and the teams are working closely with partner agencies to tackle those involved.

“We will not tolerate this behaviour and we take a zero-tolerance approach to these offences.

“Positive arrests will be made if the evidence allows and we will look to prosecute those identified.

“We encourage the public to report incidents of disorder and if you have any information linked to any of these crimes please do report via 101. In an emergency always call 999.”