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Friday, October 10, 2008, 07:00
aline.nassif@essnmedia.co.uk
Police officers are set to be stationed in Croydon secondary schools in a bid to combat gang violence, the Advertiser can reveal.
It's believed the borough's three main gangs have effectively been wiped out, with members of DSN (Don't Say Nothing), Gipset and GMG (Get Money Gangsters) all either in custody or being closely watched.
But younger children are now starting to associate themselves with the gangs, believing this will protect them - a trend police are determined to stamp out.
PC Ian Reeve, a member of Croydon's gang squad, set up in March this year, said: "That's the problem in Croydon. A lot of young kids associate themselves with gangs to give them added protection, and before you know it seems as though everyone's in a gang, which is simply not true.
"We've got the active gang members out of the way so now we are dedicating all our resources to making sure young kids make the right decisions in life."
PC Reeve slammed the perception gangs are "overrunning the borough" and said the culprits - about 25 in all - are out of the system.
He said: "DSN became a problem about two years ago, but now they are all either serving or facing custodial sentences," he said
"There was talk of 40 or 50 members, but the others were just loosely associated with DSN."
Gipset, a group of 18 to 20-year-olds who set up a couple of years ago and terrorised the Thornton Heath area, has also been stopped in its tracks, he says.
PC Reeve insisted all "four or five" members had been taken off the streets in the last two or three months.
However the younger GMG gang, whose ten members aged between 14 and 16 are still free and in "some form of education", are under daily surveillance.
This group of delinquents formed half a year ago, out of a music group that met up regularly.
PC Reeve said: "Their parents are being incredibly co-operative with us and we're keeping a very close watch on them.
"They are at the age where good influences can turn their lives around."
Speaking at a Town Hall briefing with David Cameron on Tuesday, Supt Adrian Roberts said he believed there were three to five gangs operating in the borough, but they were fairly loose and chaotic organisations.
He said it was important the police worked to break down links between gangs in Croydon and those in neighbouring boroughs to stop them spreading.
According to PC Reeve, the hard-core gang members in Croydon are predominantly from single parent families, and many of them are from ethnic minority groups.
However, PC Reeve insists almost all of them are from middle class backgrounds, of "high intelligence", and born to parents who have a "strong work ethic".
As well as putting police into schools, other planned initiatives include organising school visits from serving prisoners; increasing the number of "mentoring" groups, where young people who have experience of gangs offer support and a face kids can "relate" to.
PS Reeve said: "We'll do anything it takes."
He added: "I've been involved in two of the most recent stabbings as the first officer on the scene and I don't want to be in that position again."
WIPED OUT: Members of DSN pose for the camera before they were taken off the streets
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