A crackdown on dangerous mini-motorbikes has been launched by police in West Bromwich.

In total eight off-road mini motocross bikes have been seized by officers since the beginning of the Easter holidays less than three weeks ago.

Police in the town and across Sandwell are using special scrambler bikes to track down nuisance riders after complaints started flooding in at the beginning of the month. They will now be compiling weekly lists of hotspot areas to be targeted, after a similar campaign ran last summer.

During this period a total of 35 mini-motos were impounded after being driven illegally. The majority of these were crushed.

In 2008 police in West Bromwich took four people to court over their use of the bikes and issued 77 warnings to people using bikes illegally. A further 21 people were reported for traffic offences and six stolen bikes recovered.

Buoyed by the success of the campaign they decided to start even earlier this year. Sergeant Bob Hartill, of West Bromwich Road Policing Unit, said: “We have already started to get complaints so we started the crackdown months early.

“At the beginning of the Easter holidays we were getting 23 complaints a week, but it is now down to around 12.

“We have already seized eight bikes, issued eight Reform Act warning notices and arrested two people, with five people reported for road traffic offences.

“People may see these bikes as fun, but if they are ridden irresponsibly they can be dangerous.

“There have been deaths in other parts of the country and it needs to be made clear that misusing these machines could prove fatal.”

Sergeant Hartill said that he expects most of the mini motos seized during this summer’s campaign will be crushed.

He said: “People can claim back their bikes if they pay a fee, but relatively low value means that very few people do.”

Last year residents from West Bromwich held public meetings following problems with the bikes on local towpaths, with complaints also made about youngsters riding bikes in Victoria Street and Queen Street in Tipton.

The mini-moto bikes can reach speeds of up to 60mph and have caused deaths and serious injuries in other areas around the country.