Two litter wardens have been accused of acting like ‘mafia bouncers’ during a row with an elderly man over a dropped cigarette butt.
Lisa Kennedy was furious when the pair marched into her launderette in Havant, Hampshire, and demanded the vulnerable man go outside.
Ms Kennedy, 49, accused the wardens of ‘bullying’ her customer, who has learning difficulties, and said they refused to leave the premises for 40 minutes.
Lisa Kennedy was furious when two litter wardens marched into her launderette and demanded to speak to an elderly customer (pictured)
The business owner called the police, but when officers arrived she claimed they told her to ‘Google’ whether or not she could escort the litter cops off her property.
Ms Kennedy said: ‘They were really intimidating.
‘They were like mafia bouncers not letting anyone in or out of the launderette, I couldn’t believe it.
‘I don’t know whether he dropped anything, they just claimed he did.
‘The elderly man was quite distressed. He was just doing his washing and was sat on the bench waiting for it to finish.
‘About 15 minutes before, one of the wardens had walked past and looked at the man.
‘Then he walked past again, opened the door and asked the gentleman if he could have a word with him outside.
‘The elderly man simply said ”no you can’t, because I don’t know who you are or what you want”.
‘The men didn’t have a recognisable uniform on so it could have been anyone really.
Ms Kennedy accused the men of ‘bullying’ her vulnerable customer during a 40-minute stand-off
‘He said he wouldn’t speak to the litter wardens outside was because last time he was [taken outside somewhere] to chat to someone he was beaten and hit on the head.’
Ms Kennedy’s partner Paul continued to ask the wardens to leave the premises after the launderette owner’s pleas fell on deaf ears.
The mother-of-two said: ‘It isn’t the first time this has happened in the shop and the gentleman was starting to get really distressed and I was starting to get cross.
‘The police came and they had a chat with the elderly man and then spoke to me.
‘I was getting really annoyed because this had been going on for 40 minutes.
Ms Kennedy quizzed one of the police officers about whether or not the wardens were allowed in her shop and was told to look it up online.
Lisa said: ‘I asked one of the officers whether they were allowed in my shop and if I can ask them to leave. He told me that the best thing to do would be to Google it.’
She added: ‘The elderly gentleman agreed to chat with the police as they had a recognisable uniform on.
‘The police them took him outside the shop and then completely threw him under the bus and gave him to the litter wardens.
‘He was really upset but he took the ticket.’
Ms Kennedy said police told her to ‘Google’ whether she could force the wardens off her property in Havant, Hampshire
Cabinet lead for Environment and Neighbourhood Services at Havant Borough Council, Councillor Wilson, said: ‘Havant Borough Council has been made aware of an incident involving enforcement officers in Havant town centre.
‘We are currently working with EH Commercial Services, who provide the service in the borough, to ensure the matter is investigated thoroughly.’
A Hampshire Constabulary spokesman said: ‘We were called at 10:39am on Tuesday 15 August to a report of a minor assault at an address on Market Parade in Havant.
‘Subsequent inquiries showed that no assault had taken place and no criminal offences were identified, therefore this is not a police matter.’