Mugged by gang of boys

[Brendan]

My opinion Daizie. The police should leave all this population control rubbish alone and just crack down with an iron fist on real crime.

Along with this, provide decent and free education. This already happens to a degree but needs work.

You can?t sort out people?s social problems but you can give them the chance to sort it out for themselves.

But then I don?t rule the world yet.

[outlooklofts dave]

jimmy two times Wrote:

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> The problem with doing self defence classes is

> that they can give a false sense of self

> confidence. I'm assuming the victims in this case

> got away relatively unscathed, even though the

> male may have got a couple of punches. If this is

> the case then they are extremely lucky. Imagine

> what could have happened if they had gone to a

> couple of self defence classes and thought they

> could 'have a go'? It's likely they would have

> come unstuck. Self defence classes do not

> replicate a real life threatening situation when

> all the senses are on overload and the fight or

> flight instinct kicks in. I'm sure they also don't

> teach self defence techniques against 5

> assailants. Best simply to hand over your property

> and report it to the Police and your insurance

> company afterwards.

This is the best advice so far.

After years of very expensive thefts from vans and lots of "you wait until I catch them........" we caught them.

Forget any ideas you might have about scaring them off/apprehending them and informing the authorities. Three tooled up heavy duty individuals who don't play by societies rules.

We just got in the van and drove off (Half Moon Lane), want to see my wife and daughter tonight.

Felt like some man points were revoked at the time, but I can live with.

I am NOT Chuck Norris!

[outlooklofts dave]

jimmy two times Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> The problem with doing self defence classes is

> that they can give a false sense of self

> confidence. I'm assuming the victims in this case

> got away relatively unscathed, even though the

> male may have got a couple of punches. If this is

> the case then they are extremely lucky. Imagine

> what could have happened if they had gone to a

> couple of self defence classes and thought they

> could 'have a go'? It's likely they would have

> come unstuck. Self defence classes do not

> replicate a real life threatening situation when

> all the senses are on overload and the fight or

> flight instinct kicks in. I'm sure they also don't

> teach self defence techniques against 5

> assailants. Best simply to hand over your property

> and report it to the Police and your insurance

> company afterwards.

This is the best advice so far.

After years of very expensive thefts from vans and lots of "you wait until I catch them........" we caught them.

Forget any ideas you might have about scaring them off/apprehending them and informing the authorities. Three tooled up heavy duty individuals who don't play by societies rules.

We just got in the van and drove off (Half Moon Lane), want to see my wife and daughter tonight.

Felt like some man points were revoked at the time, but I can live with.

I am NOT Chuck Norris!

[LegalEagle-ish]

The colour of the future is RED, bloody revolution!

I just wanted to put in my tuppence worth about the gun thing.

Canada has a similar level of gun ownership as the US but no where near the same levels of violent crime or murder.

Also countries like France, Italy and Switzerland have high levels of easily accessable private gun ownership but lower levels of violent crime than the UK.

I personally think my family will be safer if i could pack a piece and i'm sure some of the mouthy little shits hanging round the place scaring you lot, would be much more polite if they knew any of the regular Jos they pass on the street might pop a cap in their arse if they tried it!

[LegalEagle-ish]

The colour of the future is RED, bloody revolution!

I just wanted to put in my tuppence worth about the gun thing.

Canada has a similar level of gun ownership as the US but no where near the same levels of violent crime or murder.

Also countries like France, Italy and Switzerland have high levels of easily accessable private gun ownership but lower levels of violent crime than the UK.

I personally think my family will be safer if i could pack a piece and i'm sure some of the mouthy little shits hanging round the place scaring you lot, would be much more polite if they knew any of the regular Jos they pass on the street might pop a cap in their arse if they tried it!

[shoshntosh]

sorry, i suppose a bit off [the apparently new] topic of this thread and back to the original one...

i am so sorry for you that you had this experience. i have been threatened and followed by a group of youths in east dulwich (younger than those described) and it was quite intimidating. so i am really nervous of young-ish boys, especially those in hoodies.

but just a couple of weeks ago i was walking with my two small children when we happened upon a group of lads much the same as the first (above) when one of them suddenly turned to me, as we passed them, and said "oh, sorry." i said "for what?" and he said "For using that bad language in front of your children". I laughed and said "I didn't hear what you said but doubt it's any worse than what they hear at home."

So, yeah, like someone else said, groups of youths in hoodies are not all criminals. i'm not quite sure how to acheive that balance between being vigilant and treating people as innocent until proven guilty.

does city life just make cynics of us all?

[Sherwick]

Tony.London Suburbs Wrote:

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>

> Peckham, for example, is a much more pleasing and

> aethsetically better place than the old Peckham of

> The 1970's/1980's

I find that very, VERY difficult to believe. However, i was in Brent (NW London) in the 70s and 80s..

To me, it seems as if the 70s and 80s have passed Peckham by.

[Ladymuck]

Have just seen JetSetWilly's comment: "don,t get me started on organic onions, bloody rip-off, as is most organic stuff"...it made me laugh because there is actually an organic onion called "JetSet"!!! Sorry folks...sorry admin. (I do think that's funny though).

[SteveT]

I do not think the houses and flats have much to do with it, it is the type of people they put in them that causes the trouble, not the residence.

[bigbadwolf]

Quite right Steve, fcuking pikeys.

[RobF]

My wife & I had a run-in with a gang of 5 boys - young men in reality - on our way home from a meal in Lordship Lane at around 10.45pm on the 11th of April. We were nearly at the top of Whately Road when a very pushy, cock-sure kid got right in our faces while the other 4 hung back a bit. He was clearly looking for trouble - he tried to antagonise us, literally walking in my way, trying to get closer to my wife (and, I assume, her bag..).

Fortunately there were a group of people talking next to some cars at the junction with Crystal Palace Road and the four called their mate off. We took refuge in the CPT, shaken but thankful to have escaped so lightly.

Descriptions? My wife remembers the one lad well, he was:

Pretty short - he only came up to my shoulder & I'm 6' 2".

Aged around 17 - 20.

Wearing what looked like a dark green (ski?) jacket with white panels on the shoulders.

He had short hair and had what were probably iPod headphones on.

All members of the gang were black. We don't recall any bandanas.

I've no idea if this will help anyone but it's a nasty experience if it happens to you. We've lived here for 6 years & it's a first for us. It certainly spoiled a rare night out for us.

[citizenED]

That sounds like a really unpleasant experience, Rob - sorry to hear about it.

[Tony.London Suburbs]

Sorry to hear that RobF.

Feeling of helplessness I don't like.

I went to Peckham and in Rye Lane, very near McDonalds there was a Youth, not listening to music, who wouldn't let anyone pass as he covered most of his side of the pavement while strutting around and then tossed a bottle to the side of the pavement when there was a bin 15 yards away and I didn't say anything and he was on his own.

Should have said something and I'm not known around there but decided it wasn't worth it but I know that the more unchallenged these Guys get the bolder they become...

[Tony.London Suburbs]

RobF Wrote:

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> My wife & I had a run-in with a gang of 5 boys -

> young men in reality - on our way home from a meal

> in Lordship Lane at around 10.45pm on the 11th of

> April. We were nearly at the top of Whately Road

> when a very pushy, cock-sure kid got right in our

> faces while the other 4 hung back a bit. He was

> clearly looking for trouble - he tried to

> antagonise us, literally walking in my way, trying

> to get closer to my wife (and, I assume, her

> bag..).

> Fortunately there were a group of people talking

> next to some cars at the junction with Crystal

> Palace Road and the four called their mate off. We

> took refuge in the CPT, shaken but thankful to

> have escaped so lightly.

> Descriptions? My wife remembers the one lad well,

> he was:

> Pretty short - he only came up to my shoulder &

> I'm 6' 2".

> Aged around 17 - 20.

> Wearing what looked like a dark green (ski?)

> jacket with white panels on the shoulders.

> He had short hair and had what were probably iPod

> headphones on.

> All members of the gang were black. We don't

> recall any bandanas.

>

> I've no idea if this will help anyone but it's a

> nasty experience if it happens to you. We've lived

> here for 6 years & it's a first for us. It

> certainly spoiled a rare night out for us.

The idea, usually, as in playing loud music on the bus over YOUR music is to try to get a response or negative reaction from you.

You did the right thing M8.

[indiepanda]

RobF Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> My wife & I had a run-in with a gang of 5 boys -

> young men in reality - on our way home from a meal

> in Lordship Lane at around 10.45pm on the 11th of

> April. We were nearly at the top of Whately Road

> when a very pushy, cock-sure kid got right in our

> faces while the other 4 hung back a bit. He was

> clearly looking for trouble - he tried to

> antagonise us, literally walking in my way, trying

> to get closer to my wife (and, I assume, her

> bag..).

> Fortunately there were a group of people talking

> next to some cars at the junction with Crystal

> Palace Road and the four called their mate off. We

> took refuge in the CPT, shaken but thankful to

> have escaped so lightly.

Sorry to hear about this experience sounds rather scary

Have to say this is making me rather nervous... this is very close to my home. Ordinarily I wouldn't think anything of walking home from the bus stop on Lordship Lane late at night, but I'm starting to question the wisdom of it now. Don't want to be paying for a taxi every time I go out now. Might as well move to a safer area and spend more on rent instead.

[Keef]

Where would a safter area be? If you're anywhere in London, this can happen.

This forum is great in many ways, but one negative is that when something like this is reported (and I'm not saying it shouldn't be), it raises fear.

[Keef]

PS. Don't want to sound insensitive, and I'm sorry to hear about that Rob.

Bless the CPT, hero of pubs! :)-D

[indiepanda]

Keef Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Where would a safter area be? If you're anywhere

> in London, this can happen.

>

> This forum is great in many ways, but one negative

> is that when something like this is reported (and

> I'm not saying it shouldn't be), it raises fear.

Oh I know that, but it just seems there has been a lot more postings about crime recently - perhaps not reflective of an increase in crime of course. Living in London is never going to be as safe as the sleepy Hampshire town I lived in before moving up here - being somewhere less sleepy has it's downsides as well as the plus points that brought me here.

I am not saying I am going to move somewhere else, but anywhere I could live is a compromise on some level, and perhaps higher accomodation costs or a smaller place is a compromise worth making to live in an area with a lower crime rate. Certainly something I will think quite hard about before actually buying.

[RobF]

Keef Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> This forum is great in many ways, but one negative

> is that when something like this is reported (and

> I'm not saying it shouldn't be), it raises fear.

That certainly wasn't my intention. I do think that people living in the area should be aware that these things do happen, even if you're unlikely to be on the receiving end. It certainly won't stop us from going out!

On a side note my wife heard first hand from a friend, that her son was stopped & questioned by police looking for a gang of boys, earlier this week. Sounded like the same lot..

[Huguenot]

I'd like to see a vigilante group, not vengeful, but allowing people to make their lawful way as they please.

[Tony.London Suburbs]

indiepanda Wrote:

perhaps not reflective of an increase in crime of course.

Living in London is never going to be as safe as the sleepy Hampshire town I lived in before moving up here - being somewhere less sleepy has it'sownsides as well as the plus points that brought me here.

I am not saying I am going to move somewhere else, but anywhere I could live is a compromise on some level, and perhaps higher accomodation costs or a smaller place is a compromise worth making to live in an area with a lower crime rate. Certainly something I will think quite hard about before actually buying.

I was walking in the Beautiful Footscray Meadows yesterday, half-a-mile, from London.

The weather was glorous, most people acknowledged you. The Dogs that most people walked were friendly (like their Owners, "funnily enough")..it was picturesque. Lovely Nature Reserve...place full of friendly, smiling Families and I thought how great this sene was.

I've not heard of any Muggings in the 26 years I have been near this area (obviously there have been some that I'm unaware of)..but I would say you are 10 times less likely to be an innocent victim.

Never had any problems coming home late, even thru' the 5 ft wide dark alleys, which are numerous.

Yet you can buy a 3-bedroom House for under 200k.

There are some good Boy and Girl Schools in the area, including Grammar Schools for both genders, and its easy access to Bexley/Sidcup/Eltham/Welling all around 1/2 miles away (including The Broadway Shopping Centre in Bexley).

You are at the start of the A2 Motorway so you can reach the heart of Kent in 20 or so minutes and can get to London Bridge/Cannon Street/Charing Cross by train in around 30 minutes.

The kids are (generally)well-behaved and the local PCSO was bemoaning the fact that the Area is too quiet so she was forced to visit local Businesses to occupy her time.

I know I'm missing something, but with Trafalgar Square only 30 or so mintes away in one direction and The beautiful Kent Countryside 20 mins away in the other, I'm damned if I know what is after 26 years (and I've still only heard of 2 minor incidents in my road which has over 100 Houses in it)...

Food For Thought?

[Sherwick]

where is this utopia, this paradise lost..?

[Tony.London Suburbs]

Sherwick Wrote:

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> where is this utopia, this paradise lost..?

Its Nirvana, Elysium, El Dorado ...its Danson Park ( just voted the best Park in London- 180 acres of pur joy...)..:(

[Tony.London Suburbs]

..I could also say its Shangri-La might that might be pushing it a tad...

[shay]

What terrible news, nastly little brats need teaching a lesson! I don't know if i'd be able to control my temper if this happened to me... Id probably end up doing more time than the muggers! :-S