BTP launches campaign to combat drug gangs’ exploitation of teens

Nearly one in five (19%) teenage boys living in the North West of England have themselves, or know someone who has, been offered work by drug suppliers, a survey commissioned by British Transport Police (BTP) suggests.

Data reveals that 9% of boys aged 13 to 19 in the North West have been offered drug-related work, with a further 15% stating their friends have received offers of this kind.

To counter drug suppliers’ attempts to groom, manipulate and seduce children into the drug trade, BTP has today (1 March) launched an all-new campaign.

The ‘Don’t Take the Bait’ digital campaign highlights the tactics drug gangs use to coerce and exploit teens, and will target 13- to 15-year-old boys in Liverpool, Birmingham and London.

Drug gangs are known to offer money, mobile phones, gaming tokens, vapes and clothing in exchange for what they present as a ‘business opportunity’. Social media messages sent by drug suppliers to teenagers seen by BTP include, “who wants to make £500 this weekend?” and “who wants overtime?”.

BTP’s dedicated County Lines Taskforce routinely encounter young and vulnerable people on the railway who have been exploited by gangs to carry drugs between locations.

The force is urging parents to speak to their children about the tactics county lines drug gangs use to hook them into a life of fear, violence and scams.

Since the Taskforce was setup with Home Office funding in late 2019 to tackle county lines activity on the railway, it has made 2,250 arrests and thousands of vital safeguarding interventions, including 115 referrals into the national referral mechanism for safeguarding.

Of those arrested, 40 per cent have been under the age of 19, however only one in five (20%) have been criminalised.

Detective Superintendent Gareth Williams, BTP’s County Lines Taskforce lead, said: “It’s not uncommon for my dedicated teams to encounter children on the railway who are being exploited to traffic drugs.

“Supported by safeguarding experts, a key priority of ours is to identify these victims and pull them out of harm’s way. The youngest person we’ve found being exploited in county lines activity was a boy aged 13 – in that case the couple controlling him to courier drugs were jailed for over 12 years.

“We’re relentless in our pursuit of these heartless human traffickers, and we are utilising modern slavery legislation to ensure they serve adequately lengthy jail terms.”

If you know who is exploiting young people in this way, you can give information 100% anonymously at fearless.org. Fearless are not the police, they are a charity. Anonymous means your identity is completely unknown.