DVD issued to schools to tackle serious organised crime

Lothian and Borders Police has launched a hard-hitting DVD aimed at youngsters to help raise awareness of, and combat, serious organised crime.

Available to secondary schools across the region, it will outline what serious organised crime is, how it can impact on teenagers and their local community and how easy it is to make a bad decision and become involved.

All secondary school children in the force area will be shown the five-segment film Slide. It centres on one youngster’s descent into a life of criminality and drug addiction after he becomes involved with serious organised crime.

Chief Superintendent Malcolm Graham said: “Organised crime group leaders like to avoid police attention by coercing others into doing their dirty work for them. Many young people may be seduced by the notion that crime brings with it perks such as designer clothes, fast cars and big houses, but this DVD quickly dispels that myth.

“Campaigns like our ‘Made from Crime’ initiative and Slide DVD reinforce this is not the case and that Lothian and Borders Police will robustly target anyone believed to be involved in this type of criminality. The reality is that if you become involved in serious organised crime you face frequent and lengthy jail terms and a very poor quality of life.

“Lothian and Borders Police is committed to tackling the crime groups that blight our community. We will continue to work closely with our partner agencies to prevent crime groups accessing and influencing the young and more vulnerable members of our communities.”

The DVD was commissioned after the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce published its Letting Our Communities Flourish document – a campaign to reduce the impact of serious organised crime across Scotland.

The force teamed up with Greenbanana Films, based in Dalkeith, to make the DVD. An additional training package has also been developed for adults who work with children in youth clubs and voluntary organisations.

The launch comes on the back of Lothian and Borders Police’s ongoing ‘Made From Crime’ campaign, targeting those who have been drawn into a life of crime and are living lavish lifestyles with funding from illegal proceeds.

Councillor Marilyne MacLaren, education leader, added: “There is nothing glamorous about a life of crime and I am sure this hard-hitting DVD will drive home to our young people the message that it will bring nothing but misery to both themselves and their families. Criminals are being sent to prison every day of the week so it is important teenagers fully realise the dangers they could place themselves in by going down this treacherous path.”