Two violent incidents within a week have raised questions about security in Beeston’s Cross Flatts Park.
On Thursday 14 February 2019 13 year old Casey Dennis Murthick was returning home after a game of football in the park when he was hit in the face by a girl with what he described as a log.
Casey suffered a broken nose with a deep laceration that needed internal and external stitches. Casey’s mother Mrs Kellett said was “in shock and very shook up.” Casey is a very keen footballer, playing for Halifax Town under 13s, his school team Morley Academy and Howden Clough under 13s.
A police spokeswoman said:
“Police are investigating following a reported assault on a 13-year-old boy in Cross Flatts Park at around 6pm on Thursday, 14 February. Enquiries are ongoing to establish the circumstances of this incident.”
Then on Monday (18 February 2019) at approximately 3:50pm a young man on a motorbike hit a dog close to the depot in the park. Bystanders helped owner, Chris Lightowler, lift the dog “Bessie” who was taken to a vet. Unfortunately the bike had broken both of Bessie’s back legs and fractured her spine and she had to be put down.
Cllr Angela Gabriel (Beeston & Holbeck) and Chair of Friends of Cross Flatts Park commented:
“These are disturbing incidents. All three ward Councillors send our best wishes for a speedy recovery to Casey and our condolences to Mr Lightowler. We call on anyone with information to come forward to the Police, but I would stress that these are isolated incidents.
“In recent years the park has become more and more popular with hundreds of people using it every day. The best way to keep the park safe is to keep using it, a busy park is a safe park. So whether it’s a visit to the children’s playground, walking the dog, a game of tennis or a cup of tea in the cafe; don’t let a couple of isolated incidents keep you away from our lovely greenspace.”
Cllr Gabriel went on to say making the park 100% safe was difficult. For example, restricting access to motorbikes would cause further problems for wheelchair users and parent with buggies. She pointed out that the Council had spent £35,000 installing two CCTV cameras within the park and urged park users to watch out for one another and to be careful especially after dark.
Small motorbikes can be heard buzzing about the entire area at all hours, day and night – it’s great having 35 grands-worth of CCTV and rules for this, that and the other but without a police (who I’m sure do their best despite savage cuts and low morale) presence there to enforce them…
It is not just Cross Flatts Park that people need to be wary of. For the last few days I have seen a number of high performance cars doing ridiculous speeds on Cemetery Roaad often in broad daylight. Not only are they driving fast they are very noisy as well, one of them a blue Audi loves to sit at the traffic lights just reving its engine. Of course the drivers know they can get away with it because there are not enough police officers to go round but I am sure all that will change when one of these idiots knock someone down. It is about time Beeston had a serious crackdown on antisocial behaviour but I think that is just wishful thinking and nothing will change. Instead I am looking for somewhere else to live.
The Asian rider was not just careless, but callous as he ran away after the incident. This could have been a human being he hit, and would then be classed as murder!
Chris Lightowler says the rider who killed Bessie was a white man.
Dave you are round there all the time I was born round there miss living round there and I think them 2 names are names I grew up with that park was always the place to be and now like every park you fear to take your dogs for a walk what as life become
It’s all well and good the police putting cameras up in cross flatts park but I’ve phoned the police asking if they can check the cc TV but they don’t want to know so why bother putting the cameras up. Would they be as bothered if it was a child who was hit or would it be a different story. If it was a police dog that was hit they would have had a national manhunt for the rider ando they’d have done him for killing the police dog ?????