EXCLUSIVE

by Neil Millard

Heroin users have turned nearly all Croydon's town centre multi-storey car parks into illicit drug dens.

An Advertiser investigation has uncovered either used syringes or the foil addicts use to cook the drug at every single one of the town's five NCP multi-storeys.

Our discoveries have raised serious questions over the company's running of the car parks and provoked embarrassing criticism from one of its main rivals.

At the NCP car parks the Advertiser visited we found two syringes, 22 pieces of foil - many showing signs of burning - three syringe lids and four pieces of cling film.

Addicts use the cling film to transport the heroin and then cook it on the foil with a lighter.

Once the heroin is a liquid it is often mixed with medical water before being injected.

The Advertiser investigation comes a week after reforming heroin addict Jordan Gilad told us of his struggle to stay clear of the drug.

Mr Gilad, 43, used to have a £400-a-week drug habit and this week showed us where he used to "shoot up", in a stairwell of NCP's Dingwall Road car park.

At the two non-NCP town centre multi-storeys, Q-Park , in Charles Street, and the Centrale shopping centre car park, we found no signs of drug use.

Q-Park's national business manager John Pearson says the firm's staff are expected to keep the car park clean and patrol it regularly.

He was not surprised so much paraphernalia was found at the NCP sites.

"It's disgraceful," he said. "There is absolutely no excuse for it.

"NCP are clearly not interested in customer experience."

Ros Morgan, manager of Croydon BID, which helps keep the town centre safe and tidy for the benefit of traders, is concerned by what we discovered.

She will take the issue up with NCP for fear our findings could put off shoppers.

"I wasn't aware of that particular problem," she said. "If this is happening anywhere I'm disappointed."

Ms Morgan says she will encourage NCP to "strive for the condition and quality" that Q-Park provides.

But she added: "I have no problem directing people (shoppers) to the NCP car parks."

Croydon police's town centre inspector Simon Ellingham says his officers do patrol the car parks but not very regularly because their main task is to provide high visibility patrols.

"Every town has a drug problem," he said. "I certainly wouldn't describe Croydon as having any in-your-face drug problem.

"You are talking about a small number of regular users who are regularly using different car parks."

When police get told of paraphernalia being found Insp Ellingham says there is a system in place to alert street cleaners.

But Insp Ellingham said the Advertiser's discovery was the first time he had been told of any such finds in three weeks.

As a result of this - and wondering how long what we found had been in each car park - we asked NCP when its Croydon car parks had last been inspected for drugs paraphernalia.

But a spokesman would not give specific details.

He said: "NCP's Croydon team patrol our car parks to make sure we achieve our goal of being safe, clean and friendly.

"We are also actively supported by police community support officers (PCSOs).

"Drug abuse is a challenge for the communities we all live and work in and NCP is exploring ways that our resources can be directed to help."