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| Police identify 169 London gangs | Police identify 169 London gangs |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| A police report on London's gang culture has identified 169 separate groups, with more than a quarter said to have been involved in murders. | |
| Gangs are responsible for more than a fifth of youth crime in London, according to the Metropolitan Police report seen by BBC London. | Gangs are responsible for more than a fifth of youth crime in London, according to the Metropolitan Police report seen by BBC London. |
| Compiled in 2006, the report found that nearly half of London gangs had been involved in serious assault. | Compiled in 2006, the report found that nearly half of London gangs had been involved in serious assault. |
| Three teenagers have died in shootings in south London in two weeks. | Three teenagers have died in shootings in south London in two weeks. |
| The largest number of gangs are said to be in Hackney, east London (22 gangs); Enfield in north London (13); Lambeth and Merton in south London (12 gangs each); Waltham Forest in north east London (11) and Brent in north west London (11). | |
| Gangs were found to have around 20 to 30 members, and to commit crimes in smaller groups of three to six. | Gangs were found to have around 20 to 30 members, and to commit crimes in smaller groups of three to six. |
| It's definitely a war out there Former gang leader | |
| African-Caribbean gangs were described as the largest group, followed by south Asian and white gangs. | |
| Religion was also found to be a defining factor, particularly between Muslim and Catholic gangs. | |
| The report distinguished between 19 gangs considered responsible for a high level of harm and 29 regarded as using a medium level. | |
| A former gang leader said some young people became gang members in order to feel protected. | |
| "They feel safe within a gang because you have got older people in the gang who are always going to look after you," he said. | |
| "You are always moving as a pack. It's as you fight in a war. | |
| "If you are fighting in a war you are not going to send just one soldier out. It's definitely a war out there." | |
| Impact 'enormous' | |
| Criminologist Dr John Pitts, from the University of Bedfordshire, said: "There are probably no more than 1,500 to 2,000 young people in gangs in all of London, but their impact is enormous." | |
| Dr Pitts said the influence of gangs could determine which schools and colleges young people felt able to go to. | |
| "There are quite a number of youth workers in London boroughs who are finding it impossible to run a service," he added. | |
| Fifteen-year-old Billy Cox is the latest victim of violence blamed on gangs. | Fifteen-year-old Billy Cox is the latest victim of violence blamed on gangs. |
| There does seem to be evidence of a rise in the number of gangs Metropolitan Police Commander Paul Minton | |
| He was shot in the chest at the family home in Clapham, south London. | He was shot in the chest at the family home in Clapham, south London. |
| Metropolitan Police Commander Paul Minton said: "There does seem to be evidence of a rise in the number of gangs and there seems to be an increase in the number of young people involved." | |
| However, he said the south London community had been "reaping the effects" of increased police activity and armed patrols in the area in the wake of the recent shootings. | |
| "The series of incidents that have occurred in south London have been unprecedented in our experience," he said. | |
| "As a consequence we are doing a great deal to ensure we are tackling the criminality that is occurring there." |