Foreign Property News | Posted by Hnin Ei Khin
Britain's busy roads are increasingly being targeted by professional beggar gangs who 'work in shifts' to besiege drivers and fleece them of their cash, MailOnline can reveal.
Gangs of 'aggressive' money hunters have been seen roaming packed junctions and traffic light interchanges as they knock on drivers' windows and hassle them for cash.
Groups of beggars are already operating in Manchester and in central London, 'intimidating' motorists, leaving some fearing for their safety.
Scroungers have also been seen waiting for motorists at red lights in Walsall, West Midlands, working at a notorious interchange near the town's historic Victorian Arboretum.
The problem has become so rife in the town that locals have come to dub the highway 'Beggars' Junction'.
In Manchester, gangs of beggars were seen this week targeting drivers at busy junctions in Princess Parkway and Regents Road.
When MailOnline visited Princess Parkway, a man in a wheelchair was among the panhandlers - suspected to be part of a professional gang - looking to get motorists to hand over their cash.
Every time the traffic stopped, he would wheel down the line of cars pleading for cash, with a large number of motorists putting money into his cup.
(A man in a wheelchair is seen accepting cash from one driver in Manchester earlier this week)
(Professional begging gangs are also reportedly operating in Walsall, West Midlands (pictured is one person begging at a junction in the town on November 21)
He stayed for about 90 minutes before heading off. At which point, we witnessed another beggar coming onto the scene almost immediately - seemingly to take over as the disabled man left.
Motorists parked at the Asda in Princess Parkway described how the aggressive begging was leaving them fearful for their safety.
Sarah Sharpe, 45, a pharmacist, said: 'I find it intimidating when they knock on the window asking for money.
'I always have my doors locked and most of the time I ignore them. Sometimes I feel as though I have no option but to give them money.
Ref: The professional gangs running Britain's Beggar Junctions: How 'aggressive' groups 'work in shifts' to hassle drivers out of hundreds every day (dailymail)
