Police have arrested 18 people in a crackdown on town-centre street drinking and begging.
Some 196 illegal drinkers had booze confiscated and 14 offenders were fined as Croydon Council and the Metropolitan Police wage war on troublemakers.
The council said the crackdown, launched jointly by the Safer Croydon Partnership and Croydon Business Improvement District (Bid) last month, had led to falls in theft, shoplifting and robbery.
The Met also plans to slap persistent offenders with Anti-Social Behaviour Orders.
Acting Chief Inspector Pete McGarry said: "We’ve made an encouraging start to this ongoing work.
Police have been speaking to problem drinkers
"We’re also referring relevant people we come into contact with to the Westminster Drugs Project so that they can get access to advice and support to help them turn their lives around.
"However, those who choose to continue with drinking or begging should be in no doubt that we will continue to target them and we’ll be looking to apply for Asbos against the most persistent offenders."
Shoplifting has fallen nine per cent since April, while theft is down six per cent and robbery eight per cent.
Coun Simon Hoar, Croydon Council's cabinet member for community safety, said: "We welcome the campaign’s success so far, and will continue to work together to make Croydon a welcoming place for everyone.
The campaign is intended to make Croydon town centre more welcoming
"Street begging and drinking has to stop. We will tackle these problems and help to support these people to get off the streets."
Matthew Sims, Croydon Bid chief executive, said: "This is a tremendous start to the partnership’s drive to clean up our streets and make the town more welcoming to all those who use it.
"This type of antisocial behaviour can be intimidating and off-putting, and for the future success and growth of our town, it’s important that these issues are tackled up-front so that everyone who comes here feels safe and comfortable at all times."
The council said it would be pressing shopkeepers who stock high-strength lagers and ciders to sell responsibly.
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