Shocking Sight (boys stabbing a wheelie bin) (Lounged)

[HAL9000]

Just popped out to get the Sunday papers. Whilst walking through a quiet residential area I saw two teenaged white boys running back and forth ahead of me. I thought they were playing. As I came closer I realised - to my horror - what they were doing.

They were armed with six-inch-bladed knives and taking turns launching frenzied stabbing attacks on a wheelie bin!

[R&A]

Where did you see this?

[PeckhamRose]

And to whom did you report it?

[R&A]

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/CrimeJusticeAndTheLaw/CrimePrevention/DG_078569

police?

it's an offence to carry a knife w/out good reason - see link.

[Jeremy]

Exactly... illegal and dangerous, you should have called the police straight away! Might have made them think twice about carrying knives.

[HAL9000]

The incident took place within the catchments of the forum - on the eastern side. The kids got a good look at me - in fact, they'd stopped to stare at me as I walked by. Unfortunately, I didn't register a good description of them - I was somewhat shocked and anxious to get away as quickly as possible so avoided making eye contact. I didn't have a mobile and it took a little while to walk back home because I returned via a different route.

I went for a drive around the area later with a camera but the streets are full of similar looking youngsters making their way to the fair at the nearby park.

I'm not sure a report to the police would achieve anything useful under the circumstances.

[reetpetite]

Lets hope they dont use those knives on someone instead of a bin.The police should still be alerted to this 'play'fighting.

[Andystar]

before we cast judgement, we don't know if they were provoked by the wheelie bin or not.

Maybe they have taken this too seriously

[northlondoner]

Listen, you may not think you have anything useful to report, but you might be surprised. Alert the Bill anyway.

[lenk]

So, was an offence committed?

Doesn't sound like it.

I'm sure the police will do everything in their power to um, get you off the phone.

[HAL9000]

I've decided against reporting anything. I?d probably be charged with wasting police time.

[eater81]

It is very sad that HAL9000 is so resigned to the fact that the police would tell her to piss off. Sadly he/she is most probably right.If this kind of thing happened in my home area (the good old north east wales) the local bobby would be straight over to give these kids a good talking to and take them home to their parents who would give them a clip round the ear.

Why should things in London be any different?

[LuLu Too]

HAL9000 Wrote:

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> I've decided against reporting anything. I?d

> probably be charged with wasting police time.

Hal,

At the very least, you should consider reporting what you saw to the local Safer Neighbourhood Team - this is exactly the sort of issue they deal with and given the levels of knife crime amongst young Londoners, I think what you witnessed is worrying behaviour and as R&A has mentioned, having such a knife in public, without just reason, is an offence.

http://www.met.police.uk/teams/SNTnewsletter/southwarkeastdulwich.pdf

[lenk]

Maybe we could have some sort of 'informant network', like they have in totalitarian societies.

I would really enjoy living somewhere like that.

[HAL9000]

Those kids looked like they had been stabbing away at that wheelie bin for some time before I got there and were still at it when I looked back as I turned the corner. Every impact on the bin sounded like the thump of a bass drum and the kids themselves were shouting and screaming. What I haven't mentioned is that I wasn't the only person to witness this. Local residents were pottering about in their gardens or fiddling with their cars within sight of them and the street itself leads to a busy shop so I wasn't the only pedestrian around. It would be interesting to know if anyone else reported it?

In any event, it's not a clear cut issue: one of my neighbours felt compelled to sell her house last year due to harassment when she called the police to complain about kids playing football on a nearby grass verge and they identified her as the complainant.

[reetpetite]

And this is a good example of why youths like these are able to do this sort of thing in full view of adults without any fear of authority because everyone just turns a blind eye !

[Jeremy]

lenk Wrote:

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> So, was an offence committed?

Yes, it is illegal to carry a knife without good reason. (I don't think stabbing wheelie bins would be classed as a good reason). It seems quite clear cut to me, I don't even think there's a debate to be had here.

[SCSB79]

HAL9000, I think (personally) it is extremely important to report this.

[Mark]

I'm guessing that it wasn't their wheelie bin either, probably a council one, so that would be criminal damage.

[lenk]

Jeremy Wrote:

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

> lenk Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > So, was an offence committed?

>

> Yes, it is illegal to carry a knife without good

> reason. (I don't think stabbing wheelie bins would

> be classed as a good reason). It seems quite clear

> cut to me, I don't even think there's a debate to

> be had here.

Courts are packed enough with pointless cases without people reporting someone stabbing a bin for God's sake.

[Mark]

Personally, I don't think that charging people with carrying knives and criminal damage is a pointless case.

[Huguenot]

Neither do I, and they were clearly practising for something.

If a knife attack takes place and two young suspects fitting this description should be sought, the police would never know about it unless you'd reported it.

It takes 10 minutes, for goodness sake.

[lenk]

Do you remember being young? It would seem you don't.

I made a fertiliser bomb when I was about 10 years old and blew up part of a playground. Should I have been locked up?

Thankfully I wasn't brought up around here, so I got a telling off and didn't do it again.

[annaj]

I would agree that it's worth making a report. Hal, you don't need to call 999, which you're right would be inappropriate, you can use the non-emergency report number or report online

Lenk, perhaps surprsingly (given that I'm probably everything you hate) I often agree with you (I certainly like "lenk" better than all the previous four letter incarnations), but honestly I think you're wrong on this one. As has already been pointed out an offence was being committed (and the arguement that small offences don't matter simply doesn't hold water, but that's a different debate) but also their behaviour could be, and was, perceived as threatening and intimidating. Reporting it isn't a middle class, busybody, overreaction, it's the responsible act of a person who cares about his community and wants everyone to feel safe living there.

[annaj]

Lenk, we cross posted, but no I don't think you should've been locked up for your fertisiler bomb and I don't think these boys should be locked up for their bin stabbing antics. I never said they should. No-one mentioned locking up except you. I think it should be reported so they can be warned that their behaviour is out of order. Or to put it another way, given a telling off so they don't do it again.