A LEYTON park has become a hot spot for drug dealing and violence, residents say.

Those living in Lyttelton Road say their street is often cordoned off and they have seen youths fighting and selling drugs in nearby Coronation Gardens.

Salima Hussein, 26, a housewife, said: “We've had quite a few fights around here and we had a stabbing last month.

“There are police in the park quite a lot and there are lots of groups of boys hanging around.

“In the past couple of months, it's been quite bad.”

A neighbour, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of repercussions, said he had been specifically targeted by gangs of youths.

The 27-year-old, who works for Hertfordshire Police, said: “Most of the violence is drug-related.

“I've had some trouble with this and my house has been targeted – my tree was burned and people have been driving past, saying they'll smash my windows.”

Aaron Chan, 34, who works for a TV company, said: “There have been quite a few incidents where police close the street.

“I don't if it's the park in particular or the height of the fences – when nobody's in there, quite a lot of people just jump over the fence.”

And Leyton ward councillor Naheed Qureshi has said the problem is one residents frequently bring up.

She said: "One of the main problems seems to be the benches outside the park - youths are using them to climb up into the park at night.

"They're going to be relocated and we're looking to work in conjunction with the police."

Cllr Qureshi added that the problem of anti-social behaviour has flared up in the last couple of months.

On July 26, police dispersed a mass brawl near the park, involving up to 20 young men.

Five teenagers were injured in the brawl, with a 17-year-old and a 14-year-old suffering knife wounds and another three youths, aged 14, 15, and 18, suffering dog bites.

A 16-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm and has been bailed to return in September.

A month earlier, on June 25, a 20-year-old man was rushed to hospital after he was found in the park with multiple stab wounds.

Cllr Bob Sullivan added: "You see these youths in there from about 4pm - they shouldn't be allowed to own the park.

"No one should be able to frighten anyone else off."

He added that plans were in place to cut back foliage so that police could see into the park more easily.