A MEMBER of the public has alleged that organised begging is taking place on the streets of Enniskillen and is concerned that the generosity of locals is being taken advantage of.

The woman – who works in Enniskillen town centre but wishes to remain anonymous – claims that she had seen firsthand a man begging on Eden Street on the morning of October 2 at around 10am. However, an hour later, the first man had been replaced by a second man, she claims.

“What the first guy did was, he sat with an empty cup, and then when somebody put money into it, he kept watching up and down [the street] and then he put the money into his hand and then into his pocket.

‘Evidence’

“He was always sitting with an empty cup, so if the police came along, there was no evidence of him begging – but he had a placard,” said the woman of her eye-witness experience.

“People had given him a bag with biscuits and sandwiches, but he left the stuff lying there.

“The next thing, the second guy came and sat exactly where the bag was, and he put everything into the bag,” she said.

Believing that the two men were working together, she added: “He was more or less marking out the place where [the first man] had been sitting.”

The woman reported the issue to the PSNI, and two officers attended the scene at around 11.30am.

Explaining that this had been an issue in the same area last year, the woman said: “Last year was probably bigger, and this is only the first of [organised begging] starting again that I’ve seen.

“They were put out of the area last year by the police, because it was going on every day, and I’d actually went out one day – there had been a girl sitting there, and then all of a sudden there was a man sitting there, and she had gone.

“He was there for a couple of hours and when he got up to go, I watched him get into a car; it was parked at the bus depot car park,” she added.

“It was really sickening to watch wee old ladies stopping to open their purse to give them money.

“I feel for people who are homeless – there are genuine cases out there that need food,” the woman told this newspaper.

In response to the woman’s allegations, a PSNI spokesman said: “Police in Enniskillen spoke with two male persons on Friday, October 2 and warned them against begging on the street.

“Whilst it is illegal to beg on the street, police are aware that there are some people in real need, who do at times resort to begging.

“Police can take enforcement action against these people, but will deal with each individual case in a sensitive manner.

“There have been nationwide reports in the past of organised begging circulating in various towns and cities.

“Police in Enniskillen have no information to suggest there is any organised begging taking place, but invite the community to report any such concerns at 101,” the PSNI spokesman added.