Drug Gangs Use Social Media To Groom Young People In County Towns
Young people are being groomed locally – ‘on their door steps’ – as drug gangs and dealers adapt the way they work to exploit young people across county lines. A new report, Between The Lines, published today by the National Youth Agency (NYA) highlights:
- There is an increasing trend for gangs to target vulnerable young people in county-towns and rural areas, as well as moving young people across county lines.
- This has been supported by increased use and diversification of social media platforms to groom different types of young people in-county and across county lines.
- There is a lack of sufficient youth services and support for young people in many of the county towns and rural areas, with a concentration of diversionary projects in the urban cities where gangs operate from.
Click on the report image below to read more.