A furious shop owner is outraged by yobs hurling an egg into his shop and hitting one customer in the face.

Paul Newman, owner of Paradise Jewellery, in Furtherwick Road, Canvey, was fuming when seven youths walked by his shop and threw an egg inside which struck a customer.

The incident took place on Saturday, November 11 at around 3pm.

The customer, a woman in her fifties, who was sitting inside, was shocked and distressed by the incident.

Mr Newman said: “It shocked all of us. The velocity of the throw showed there was intent to cause damage or hurt someone. I heard the kids laughing as they walked away. I ran to confront them and they were aggressive. Later on I found out they had thrown apples at someone’s car and damaged it. These kids have no respect at all.

“Some people think getting egged isn’t serious, but I’ve seen someone throwing an egg at a bouncer at close range and he got a black eye.

“We called police and they said they would come in 40 minutes but no one turned up. We waited for another hour, and the woman had to leave because she has a dependent waiting for her at home.

“I contacted police again, they said they wouldn’t dispatch an officer because the customer was not hurt. I’m just worried that these kids are terrorising our streets, and no one is doing anything about it. I have a lot of respect for the police but it’s very disappointing that they haven’t dealt with the issue.”

This comes after Essex Police issued a dispersal order on Canvey to tackle reports of antisocial behaviour during Halloween. Furtherwick Road was one of the locations that was subject to the order.

A spokesman for Essex Police said: “We are aware of an incident where an egg was thrown into a shop on Canvey Island and struck a woman in the face.

“We established that the woman was not injured, and so no officer was sent. Since the report we have been in contact with the victim and the investigation is being progressed. We believe those responsible are aged in their mid-teens. This type of behaviour is unacceptable and is a matter for the whole community to address.”