COUNCIL chiefs have stepped in to give a rapidly-spreading urban myth the boot.

Stockton has been hit by a bizarre craze of people throwing shoes or trainers, tied together at the laces, over telephone cables.

Some believe the shoes are a signal of a drug dealer operating in the area, and act as an advert for the dealer to his customers.

But Councillor Steve Nelson, Stockton Borough Council's cabinet member for housing and community safety, said: "We would like to put people's minds at ease about this.

"We do not believe that a pair of shoes over a telephone cable is a sign a drug dealer lives nearby. It is more likely to be a sign that some idiot has thrown their shoes away."

A council spokesman said: "It is not something we have had a great deal of calls about, and there seems to be no reason that the shoes are related to drug dealing.

"We are not sure where the myth has come from, but it is certainly not something that has come to our attention before."

Police have also dismissed the drug dealer theory.

A spokeswoman for Cleveland Police said: "We do not believe this is the case, and would not consider it evidence that drug dealers were operating in the area."

Coun Nelson added: "This type of activity makes an area look scruffy, and that in turn can generate other types of criminal and anti-social behaviour such as fly tipping, graffiti and damage to property.

"We want to encourage our residents to take pride in where they live, and we're asking them to report such incident, so we can get them cleared up quickly and ideally make sure who ever commits this type of vandalism is caught."

The council spokesman said removing shoes from telephone wires requires a cherry picker to reach them safely, which costs £60 a time.

He said: "We would ask anyone who witnesses this sort of incident to call 01642-527615, so we can have them removed immediately and ensure that the perpetrator can be sent the bill."