Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
They twisted my son’s mind and got him
A MUM has told how her innocent and academically gifted son became unrecognisable after he was recruited by a drugs gang at just 13.
Sarah watched helplessly as Tom developed an obsession with designer gear, started using slang and acquired an awareness of different postcodes – pointing to a knowledge of gang boundaries. The mother found it difficult to convince police he was a victim of exploitation and grooming rather than simply a criminal himself.
Sarah said: “How does a young person with no exposure to negative influences or criminality suddenly decide he is choosing a criminal lifestyle?
“He changed his behaviour, the way he spoke, the way he wanted to get into designer labels. He was running drugs and knew boundaries between areas and gangs.
“There was a build-up and it escalated. He went missing for a lengthy period, was found by police and we were told he had been exploited by gangs.
“I didn’t know what had happened. I didn’t know if he had been kidnapped or taken away by someone. I was stunned when I found out.”
Sarah said Tom was manipulated over a period of 18 months. She went on: “I didn’t recognise the person he became. This was my son wanting to completely dismiss the personality he had grown up with and take on a new, horrible and negative one. This could