We're terrorised by nightmare neighbours who brandish KNIVES and beat each other up – it's like living in a soap

The Sun

07-07-2025

A MUM is "living in fear" for her family's safety because of nightmare neighbours who she has seen brandish knives and beat each other up.
Jenna Moffat from Dalkeith, Scotland, even captured footage of locals engaging in violence - with one clip showing a physical attack in her building's stairwell.
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The mum has reported numerous of these violence incidents, as well as ones of drug use and animal neglect, in recent years but says her landlord Melville Housing Association "won't address" them.
Shocking video footage captured in the last week shows one man brandishing a knife close to Jenna's property whilst trying to enter a flat.
But despite police being called "numerous times" to reports of violence involving a tenant in her block of flats, a housing officer advised they would "need to get all their ducks in a row" before any action could be taken.
Frustrated, Jenna has even compared her experience to "living in a soap opera", saying the situation has been "ongoing" ever since she moved in four years ago.
The mum added: "[It has] gradually gotten worse.
"It's horrible because you don't know what you're going to walk out to."
She explained how there have been times where she and her family had gone downstairs only to find people "sitting, taking drugs or people fighting in the stairwell".
Jenna continued: "This is causing significant fear and alarm to me and my family - I'm now getting antidepressants and anxiety medication due to the stress and everything that's going on.
"I don't really sleep because I'm so anxious - the buzzer goes constantly throughout the day and night and people scream and shout at the door every single day to get in."
Jenna, who lives around eight miles south-east of Edinburgh, said local drug users also frequently come to her building, leading to regular antisocial behaviour in the area.
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The mum added that she was not alone in her fears, with neighbours also sharing their worries with her - saying they avoid going downstairs out of a fear of being attacked.
She said: "The reason I moved to this flat was because I was fleeing domestic violence and what's going on is very, very triggering.
"When I told my housing officer this, they didn't seem to care.
"I've been asking to get moved for the last three years but I'm told they need more evidence before anything can be done.
"I said how much more do you need me to complain about him and give you evidence?"
'I'M JUST GETTING NOWHERE WITH THEM'
Jenna has not just sent videos and pictures but even voice notes "every time something happens".
Despite this, Jenna says she is told "they don't have enough evidence to remove him from the property".
She believes the man has "broken his contract numerous times", adding she couldn't understand why he had not been removed from the area.
Jenna continued: "I'm just getting nowhere with them.
"They also said I need to put in for an exchange, but I told them no one is going to exchange with me - everybody in Midlothian knows the person and know the sort of thing that goes on."
A Melville Housing Association spokesperson said: "Due to tenant confidentiality, we are unable to comment on individual cases.
"We can confirm that we take all reports of antisocial behaviour and criminal activity seriously and are committed to the safety and wellbeing of our tenants.
"Where incidents are reported to us, we work closely with partners including the police to respond appropriately within the scope of our powers as a landlord."