County Lines Gangs: Children forced into drug crime in Scotland

Across the UK children are being stabbed, trafficked or even murdered by people they believe to be their friends.

New data, given exclusively to this programme, provides a snapshot of the harrowing consequences for young people who are exploited by organised crime gangs and groomed into transporting drugs.

Most children refuse to report or even speak out about their experiences.

Our Scotland Correspondent, Kathryn Samson, has been talking to one boy who warns this could happen to any child, from any background, anywhere in the country.

“If your pals were doing it  then you wanted to do it to make yourself feel cool, to make yourself feel included. But at the same time it came with a lot of problems, like violence and debt.”

“Chris” speaks more like an adult than a 16 year old boy. His experience running drugs for an organised crime gang has forced him to grow up fast. He’s been threatened with knives and beaten up. He’s been set up to be robbed by gang members, keen to keep him beholden to them and  in a cycle of debt.

“I come from quite a good background, he tells me, “the target isn’t always  just people from bad backgrounds.  It’s people from anywhere.”

Across the UK, tens of thousands of children are at risk of being exploited by criminal networks known as county lines gangs. They get coerced into transporting drugs from cities into towns and rural areas.

Chris was lured in by older boys when he was 14. He initially resisted help from the charity Action for Children, which runs an intervention service in eight areas across Scotland, England and Wales.

He connected with a support worker we called “Jimmy”, who puts his own safely on the line to help children. He was involved in organised crime for more than 20 years and has been to prison.

“I know these kids, he tells me, “I know the outcome that’s waiting for them. So I thought I could pour myself into this and hopefully make a difference.

“We don’t believe in a hopeless case, we think there’s a hopeless situation but there is still a soul in there, there is still a young person in there. So It is about getting alongside them, trying to empower them, trying to equip them, being consistent in my message to them and then the hope is the penny drops.”

Jimmy helped Chris turn things around.

“ So he kind of put it quite bluntly, you are either going to the jail or you are going to the grave, says Chris, “there’s two options and kinda both lead to the same outcome.”

He had to pay back all his debts to make sure nobody could come after him. Many other children will not be as lucky. The consequences can be harrowing.

New data, given exclusively to Channel 4 News by Action for Children, provides a snapshot.

In the last four years, 179 serious incidents were reported to them.

A third of these involved a weapon, including knives, metal poles and even dog chains. Some 50 children were stabbed, two were murdered.

Support remains patchy across the UK. Many children suffer in silence, unsure of where to turn or how to get out.

“Truthfully we need more finance, says Jimmy, “we need money. It’s gonna take lived experience guys coming in and being paid well because it’s a damned good job but it’s also a damned difficult job.”

A Home Office spokesperson told us, “We are determined to stop evil criminal gangs from exploiting and luring young people into crime and drugs. The government committed in their manifesto to introducing a new offence to tackle child criminal exploitation.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson told us, “The Scottish Government continues to work to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all of Scotland’s children and young people. We are working with stakeholders to determine gaps in the current system and respond appropriately to improve our response to child criminal exploitation and to provide support to victims.”