Woman handed 20-year Asbo

Olga Conco's Asbo means she is banned from returning to the road where she used to live until 2027. If she disobeys the order and sets foot in the area again, she faces a jail sentence.

The 34-year-old created such havoc that police were called out more than 90 times over a three-year period to deal with her appalling behaviour, which included banging on doors and yelling at young children.

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• Yobs are laughing off their Asbos

Neighbours accused her of turning their friendly, peaceful street - where Victorian terrace houses sell for £700,000 - into a place where residents were afraid to leave their homes.

One said: "She was running amok and screaming and shouting at all times of the day, waking people up at four or five in the morning. Since she's gone, the road has returned to its sociable self."

Thames magistrates imposed the Asbo after previously finding Ms Conco, from Hackney, East London, guilty of being drunk and disorderly in January.

Inspector Richard Munns, of the Metropolitan Police's safer neighbourhood team, said: "There is no doubt in my mind that this is the longest-ever Asbo. I was absolutely stunned.

"It was imposed on the back of her criminal conviction. If you convict someone of a criminal offence, you can ask the court to grant an Asbo. That is what happened in this case.

"The 20-year term is significant because it shows the court is seeking to resolve a problem in the long term.

"We have demonstrated that long-term, difficult problems can be resolved and that the courts are willing to help us to deal with anti-social behaviour."

But the length of the Asbo was criticised by Harry Fletcher of the National Association of Probation Officers.

He said: "There is little doubt that this woman will crop up somewhere else in the criminal justice or social service system at some stage in the future. This just moves the problem to another area.

"A 20-year Asbo is unusual, if not unprecedented. Most are two or three years and the longest we have on our files is ten years."

Under the terms of the order, Ms Conco, who has now moved out of Hackney, is banned from two streets there - Southborough Road and neighbouring Lauriston Road. She is also banned from possessing alcohol in a public place in Hackney and Islington for the same length of time.

Asbos were first used in 1999 after being introduced in the Crime and Disorder Act that had been passed the previous year.

Critics say they are used too often against people who require help rather than punishment but the Government insists they have made an important contribution to reducing minor crime and vandalism.

A Home Office spokesman said: "There are no centrally held records on the lengths of Asbos. The minimum is two years but it is up to the court to set the length, which can be as long as is deemed suitable."

A spokeswoman for the Crown Prosecution Service said: "This certainly sounds like the longest."