POLICE have finally cracked down on New Age travellers who have been causing mayhem in the Angus countryside for the past three weeks, according to villagers and farmers.
In a massive military-style raid, officers seized an 8000-watt amplifier, which had been pumping out rave music for 24 hours, under a hail of rocks and abuse.
Yesterday, police refused to allow any more travellers' vehicles up the hill to their camp above Letham village and warned those who left the camp that they would not be allowed to return.
The invasion has led to carnage, with starving dogs, allowed to run wild by their owners, killing 2000 young pheasants, 15 sheep, and 3 roe-deer, and farmers are now claiming that dogs are attacking cattle. Six dogs were shot by estate workers last week.
Several hundred travellers have been on the top of Dunnichen Hill for three weeks now and they were joined by hundreds more revellers for a weekend rave.
Police were out in force and stopped vehicles from driving to the top of the hill in a bid to halt reinforcements of self-styled New Age Picts arriving at the camp on the site of the Pictish victory in the Battle of Nechtansmere.
Tension between landowners and the travellers has mounted with the slaughter of the 2000 young pheasants by dogs which had got into rearing pens.
Last night, landowner Norman Ogg said: ``We just don't know what to expect next. These dogs are starving and they are hunting cattle now.
``As soon as we put the sheep indoors for safety, the dogs turned their attention to cattle. This has gone on for three weeks now. We don't know when it will end.''
He added that the estate has suffered ``a terrible loss'' with the slaughter of 2000 young pheasants, costing around #5000.
``They have gone into the pheasant pen and cleaned them up. Young deer are being hounded by the dogs.''
He revealed that an attempt two weeks ago to serve an interdict on the travellers to prevent the festival from going head had to be abandoned after police were unable to guarantee the safety of sheriff officers.
A second interdict aimed at preventing travellers from lighting fires, chopping down trees and allowing their dogs to roam was ignored yesterday.
Potato merchant Jim McGugan said: ``I think this festival should be stopped if it is going to degenerate like this. It is untidy and costly to police. They have overstayed a reluctant welcome. The trick will be in finding how to stop it.''
Farmers and landowners now fear that the travellers will form a convoy to head to nearby Rossie Moor for a ``festival' which has been scheduled for next weekend.
Some travellers, including a 100-strong party from Northumbria, have announced that they plan to spend the summer in Angus.
The number of travellers at the camp fell to 300, including dozens of chidren, after last weekend's festival, but has increased with the arrival of more from the South for next week's event.
Farmers near Rossie Moor have barricaded field entrances with boulders, farm machinery, fallen trees and mounds of manure in a bid to keep the unwanted guests out.
A spokesman for Tayside Police said that the force would act on its own terms to eliminate nuisance caused by the travellers.
He added: ``Following more than 20 complaints, an 8000 watt sound system at an illegal festival was seized by police. The sound system was installed last week and was sited on a hill facing the village Letham. It was causing a significant degree of disturbance to local people which we are not prepared to tolerate.
``The sound system was seized shortly after 6.30pm in the face of hostility from an element of the travellers at the camp.''
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