A SUSPECTED drug dealer has been arrested in a park which parents claim has become a no-go zone.

People living near Chalkwell Park said a string of offences, including robberies and a stabbing, have dogged the area for two months.

The outcry comes after a concerned parent called police about a man allegedly dealing drugs near the children’s play area.

Officers swooped and arrested a 27-year-old, from Hockley.

Louise Gibbons, 37, of Hall Park Avenue, used to let her two boys play in the park.

She said: “I won’t do that now. You don’t want to over-react to things too much, but there just seems to be so much crime there at the moment.

“I’ve told them it’s not a safe place to go. They’ll have to play in the garden instead.”

Another parent, who wished to remain anonymous, added: “It’s a lovely park, but it seems to have a bit of a reputation right now. I won’t let my children go there.”

In April, a 14-year-old schoolboy was mugged as he walked past the park, while an 18-year-old man had a knife pressed against his back in nearby Chalkwell Avenue.

Both victims had mobile phones stolen. Three teenage boys have since been arrested in connection with these robberies and bailed. A month later, a 22-year-old man was knifed outside the park’s public toilets.

Albert Wallace, chairman of the Chalkwell Ward Residents’ Association, said: “It’s something of which we are aware.

“We support the police wholeheartedly and would urge anybody who sees any crimes taking place to report them as soon as possible.”

The man arrested on suspicion of drug-dealing has been released on police bail until September 26.