MORE than two dozen Suffolk “Saga louts” aged 70 and upwards were charged with crimes last year, police have revealed.

Colin Adwent

MORE than two dozen Suffolk “Saga louts” aged 70 and upwards were charged with crimes last year, police have revealed.

The pensioners, whose ages range from 70 to 82, faced a raft of accusations including sex crimes, assaults and driving while drunk.

A total of 32 OAPs who had passed their 70th birthdays were arrested and subsequently appeared in court during 2008, according to Suffolk Constabulary figures.

Among those who faced criminal charges was a 75-year-old man accused of rape and two men, aged 73 and 78, who faced accusations of child pornography.

Ten pensioners aged 70 to 82 years old appeared in court on allegations of drink driving, while a 71-year-old was charged with driving while disqualified.

The figures emerged after a request to Suffolk Constabulary under the Freedom of Information Act by The East Anglian Daily Times.

Other seniors accused of criminal activity included a 70-year-old believed to have committed actual bodily harm, while two others aged 70 and 71 were said to have assaulted police officers.

A 76-year-old was charged with money laundering offences, while four 71-year-olds and a 70-year-old faced public order offences, usually termed as threatening or abusive behaviour.

Of the remainder a 72-year-old was accused of using public communications to send indecent/obscene/threatening material, while others were charged with criminal damage, theft, failing to stop for a police constable and failing to stop at the scene of an accident.

All 32 pensioners were men.

Despite their ages, Suffolk police said officers have a duty to bring offenders to justice regardless of the seniority of suspects.

Kate Rutsch, a spokeswoman for Suffolk Constabulary said: “Nobody is above the law, whether they are 18 or 80 years old.

“If an offence has been committed then it will be investigated and those involved will be prosecuted.”

A “Saga lout” has become a recognised term for an elderly person behaving badly, usually by drunken or abusive behaviour, which was coined nearly 20 years ago.