7:56am Friday 1st August 2008
By Neil Macfarlane
POLICE have warned youngsters about the dangers of glamorising gang culture after footage of a group of 15- year-olds posing with guns, drugs and alcohol appeared online.
The teenagers from Darlington have been interviewed by police after a series of photographs was posted on website You Tube.
Set to a gangster rap soundtrack, the boys are shown holding banned weapons, including rifles and knuckledusters.
Piles of beer cans and bags of cannabis also feature in the video titled Bad Boiz 4Lyf.
The boys’ homes were raided after police were tipped off about the film.
Lynsey Carter, the local Police Community Support Officer (PCSO), who led the investigation, said: “We tracked down all the people in the footage and got in touch with their parents immediately.
“One of the boys is shown wearing a knuckle-duster at a bus stop. We worked out where the bus stop was straight away and were able to find out who he was.
“We contacted the parents of everybody in the video and made them come down for a talk. We showed them the footage and talked to them about the problems with gang culture and the dangers of using weapons.
“They need to know the kind of image this projects.
“They might think they are being cool by pretending to be gangsters, but potential employers could see this. Rival gangs could see it too, and that could lead to more violence.”
None of the boys has been charged, but investigations are continuing. Police said cases could still be brought to court.
The boys, who cannot be named because of their age, are pupils at Longfield School, in the town.
It is not known if the guns are real or replicas, although some are believed to be air weapons. A police spokesman said: “The footage is apparently still on You Tube, but steps are in hand to have it removed.
“If anyone posts footage on You Tube or similar sites which show, or appear to show, criminal offences, then there is a likelihood they will be traced.”
A comment posted on the video by one of the youths two weeks ago reads: “Police searched my room about this vid. Take it off plz.”
© Copyright 2001-2012 Newsquest Media Group
http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk