AFRAID to tell his parents he had been to a party, a 15-year-old youth slashed his own face and made up a story about being robbed.

The youth received a reprimand from police. Now, using new legislation, police say they will be cracking down on people who make false crime reports. They could find themselves issued with an £80 penalty notice as an alternative to prosecution by the courts.

The crackdown on fraudulent crime victims comes after a number of people, were charged after making false robbery claims.

Superintendent Peter Scofield, deputy commander of Bury Police, said: "Robbery is a priority for the Greater Manchester Police, and our officers are working hard to reduce the numbers of offences and to catch as many offenders as we can.

"Here in Bury, specially selected police officers are deployed to provide an immediate response to reports of street robberies, and to gather as much evidence as possible at an early stage. Other officers then investigate the offences very thoroughly.

He continued: "Sadly, these thorough investigations have revealed that some people are prepared to waste valuable police time in making false reports of crime for their own reasons.

"These people divert police resources from helping genuine victims of crime, and we will not hesitate to deal with them as firmly as we can."

The Prestwich youth had attempted to convince the police and his parents that he had been a victim of crime, rather than saying that he had been to a party against his parents' wishes.

In March, a 51-year-old man from Radcliffe was made a subject of a 12 month rehabilitation order, ordered to attend remedial classes and made to pay court costs after falsely claiming he had been robbed of cash, a mobile phone and prescribed drugs.

A warrant was issued against another Radcliffe man who had been charged with knowingly making a false statement and wasting police time after claiming he had been robbed.

Two further police investigations into false reports of robbery are currently under way.

Supt Scofield said: "Making a false report of crime, and making false statements, are themselves criminal offences, and there is a range of options, including prosecution, for the police to deal with those responsible.

"Under recent legislation, the Chief Constable has authorised the use of 'Penalty Notices For Disorder' for a range of offences, including wasting police time by giving false reports.

"This means that people who make false reports of crime may be issued with penalty notices for £80 as an alternative to prosecution.

"The police in the borough will have no hesitation in issuing these notices where appropriate."