Youths will pay heavy price for using weapons, says police chief
YOUNG PEOPLE have been warned against getting involved in gun and knife crime following a series of incidents in South Yorkshire.
Chief Constable Stephen Watson said police were bringing a “swift and sure” response to a spate of shootings in Sheffield and a rise in knife-related crime.
He said: “We are getting some very young people involved.
“This is doubly tragic in that we have, in extremis, young people losing their lives.
“Those who engage themselves in this level of criminality pay a very heavy price because when brought to justice, as they surely will be, they have wasted their young lives.”
In the most recent shooting a 17-year-old was injured in Nodder Road, Woodthorpe, with a 30-year-old shot in the leg last month in Chadwick Street on the estate and an apparent drive-by shooting in Bransby Street in April.
Fatal stabbings happened in Lowedges, with a victim aged 15 and a 15-year-old suspect now charged and in Woodthorpe, where 19-year-old Ryan Jowle died and a 22-yearold from Gleadless has been charged with murder.
Chief Constable Watson said: “Our response has been swift and sure.
“My officers are more than equal to the challenge of containing, reducing and eradicating this problem.
“One firearm on the streets is one too many.
“It is still very difficult to get hold of a firearm and those with firearms tend to be involved in organised criminality.”
A new knife crime strategy is to be launched by South Yorkshire Police with a focus on preventing young people carrying weapons.