Southport Reporter (R) Online Nespaper for Merseyside

Read our Tracking & Cookie Usage Policy

 

Terms and Conditions

Southport and  Mersey Reporter -  Your free online newspaper service covering the Merseyside region - (Greater Liverpool).
Covering the news in and around Merseyside

MERSEY REPORTER

Click on here to email our news room today!

Email

 

 
Your free online newspaper for Merseyside
   
This website is licence to carry news from Vamphire.com and UK Press Photography.

  RSS

 

Latest Edition

Archive

Shop

Order Photos  Help Client Admin Advert Options

Updated news stories weekly.  Published online only, every Thursday

Your online newspaper.   Your words.

Issue:- 17 May  2012

Shooting in Blundellsands. Can you help the Police with the inquires?

MERSEYSIDE Police Detectives are appealing for information on the whereabouts of a blue Audi car after shots were fired in Crosby on Wednesday, 16 May 2012.

Officers are investigating the incident, which happened on Abbotsford Road near to Blundellsands Railway Station, at around 8am when a passenger in a navy blue Audi saloon car fired a gun at the driver of a silver Range Rover. The 43 year old driver, the only occupant in the Range Rover, was uninjured, but the car sustained damage consistent with shotgun pellets.

The Audi then drove off at speed in the direction of Liverpool followed by the Range Rover. The cars are believed to have travelled along Kenilworth Road, Blundellsands Road East, College Road and on to Oxford Road where there are currently roadworks. The Audi was then lost by the Range Rover.

Detectives are appealing for anyone who saw either car travelling at high speed along these roads to call Merseyside Police. Officers are particularly keen to receive information about the Audi, which is described as either an A4, A5 or A6 with Sefton Taxi Plates. It is believed that this is a 'rogue taxi'.

Merseyside Police believe a minority of unlicensed taxi drivers are knowingly involved in criminality while taking trade away from law-abiding cabbies.

Detectives are appealing for information and help from the taxi community and the legitimate users to identify rogue cabbies, in particular this navy blue Audi.

There is an ongoing focused police operation led by the Matrix unit into the criminal use of taxis and it will form part of the continued robust crackdown on gun crime and drug-dealing linked to criminal gangs.

Chief Superintendent Tony Doherty, the head of the Force's Matrix unit, said:- "The majority of Merseyside's taxi drivers are honest, hard-working, law-abiding people. They take pride in what they do and maintain their cab to a safe standard and pay for it to be licensed. I know they are continually frustrated when they see illegal cabbies plying for their business, in areas that they shouldn't be plying for trade and in unsafe cabs while not bothering to pay the taxes and overheads of the legitimate drivers. My message to the legitimate drivers is to help the police do something about it; let us know about the rogue cabs, their illicit trade and the companies who are assisting them to take your business. And my message to those who drive around in taxis unfit for the roads or are unlicensed and not insured is that you can expect to be stop checked by police in the coming weeks and have your cars taken off you."

Crime scene investigators have forensically examined Abbotsford Road and the Range Rover. Officers are reviewing CCTV and conducting house-to-house enquiries.

Officers are also keen to speak with anyone at Blundellsands Railway Station between 7am and 8.30am today who may have seen people acting suspiciously, or suspicious vehicles in the area.

Det Chf Supt Doherty added:- "This was an extremely reckless incident showing complete disregard for people going about their ordinary business in the middle of rush hour and during the school run. The station was busy with commuters and we are appealing to these people to contact us if they believe they have any information that could help our investigation and put those responsible behind bars. We also ask members of the community to contact us if they noticed any cars either missing from their street this morning or abandoned in their area. We have increased our patrols in Sefton to reassure residents we are doing all we can to find the offenders and bring them to justice. We have an ongoing operation aimed at those prepared to use firearms on Merseyside's streets and we will act on all information received from the public, including anonymous information received via Crimestoppers to stop this scourge of gun crime."

Detective Inspector Tom Keaton said:- "Our officers are in the area to reassure residents that we are doing all that we can to find those people responsible. We have an ongoing operation aimed at those prepared to use firearms on Merseyside's streets and we continue to act on all information received from the public, including anonymous information received via Crimestoppers. This happened at a very busy time and there will have been many people out and about."

Anyone with information is asked to call the Matrix Team on:- 0151 777 5699, or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on:- 0800 555 111.

'Sexting' from peers more concerning than 'stranger danger' to young people warns the NSPCC

A new in depth study launched by the NSPCC reveals the level that 'sexting' has increased amongst teenagers, with schoolgirls facing increasing pressure to provide sexually explicit pictures of themselves.  The qualitative study based on a focus group of 35 young people shows that while they are increasingly savvy at protecting themselves from so called 'stranger danger' they are having to face a new problem of 'peer to peer' approaches with boys constantly demanding sexual images.  While some girls are developing sophisticated techniques to deal with this pressure, others are left struggling to cope and feeling unsure of what to do.  The research, undertaken by the Institute of Education, King's College London and the London School of Economics, sought the views of 13 to 15 year olds at 2 London schools. Previous research has shown that more than a third of under 18s have received an offensive or distressing sexual image by text or email.  Jon Brown, Head of the Sexual Abuse Programme at the NSPCC, said:- "What's most striking about this research is that many young people seem to accept all this as just part of life. But it can be another layer of sexual abuse and, although most children will not be aware, it is illegal. Girls should never be forced to carry out sex acts and boys must understand it's not acceptable to put them under such duress that they have little choice but to agree. It's very concerning that whilst young people seem to have a solid grasp of 'stranger danger' they are often struggling to cope with problems from their own peer group. This can't be treated as just one of those phases children go through. And although some of it may sound familiar from previous generations, the difference is that the consequences are now far wider with images remaining forever and potentially being viewed by mass audiences. They can also fall into the hands of adult abusers. It must be dealt with properly with parents, teachers, industry and other professionals working together to give victims the protection they need."

The study reveals girls can be pestered relentlessly until they finally agree to perform sexual acts which can be recorded on mobile phones. These can then be broadcast to groups of young people leaving the devastated victim to face ridicule and abuse. Researchers found there were 'significant numbers' in circulation with one boy alone claiming to have 30.  In some cases the girls even write a name in black marker pen on a part of their body to show it's the 'property' of a certain boy. In a bid to start tackling the problems raised by this work the NSPCC is calling for all professionals to receive training in the latest technology so they are better equipped to deal with sexting. It also wants secondary schools and the communications industry to give young people better protection through education which promotes considerate, respectful relationships. And parents must talk to their children about this issue and the potentially serious ramifications of their actions.

1 girl who was interviewed for the NSPCC said she had agreed to perform a sex act and was reduced to tears when she discovered it was on a video being passed around. Another told how she feared suffering the same experience would lead to mental problems:- "I could go into depression because you are going to be known, you are going to be talked about; seen in a different way."  Researchers found the young victims are often left to suffer alone in a culture of silence for fear of being labelled 'snitches' or 'snakes' if they tell anyone. But despite the constant barrage of messages from boys asking for 'beats' intercourse or 'heads' oral sex, the teenagers say they cannot live without their mobile phones, using them from the moment they wake until they go to sleep.  Lead researcher Jessica Ringrose from the Institute of Education, said:- "Girls are being pressured by text and on Blackberry messenger to send 'special photos' and perform sexual services for boys from an early age. In some cases they are as young as eleven. Even while we were interviewing them they were being bombarded with these messages. Some of them found ingenious ways to fend off the demands but still the pressures are immense and the younger girls in particular wanted help. Although this is happening through new mobile-internet technologies teens still face the same old situation that boys who have sex are seen as 'players' and earn the respect of their peers while girls who do the same are labelled easy. Some of the boys have a disturbing approach to this. They have been encouraged by a wider culture to see girls' bodies as property which they can own. But even if boys don't have this view it's difficult for them to directly challenge this for fear of being called 'gay.' At its worst sexting can be an extreme form of cyber-bullying which has to be tackled."

Rosalind Gill, from King's College London, said:- "We were deeply upset by the levels of sexual abuse, physical harassment and even violence some of the girls experienced on a regular basis. Apart from the immediate acute distress this kind of behaviour can cause we also have to consider the affect it might have in later life. The girls are in an almost completely male oriented environment with little opportunity to explore their own sexual desires and this could have serious implications for their self - esteem as young women."

The report, 'A Qualitative Study of Children, Young People and Sexting,' was launched at a House of Commons event chaired by MP Claire Perry.

Click on here to go back to this week's home page!

Our radio station phone in message line...   Call us now!

Click on this section to see last weeks edition of Southport and Mersey Reporter!

Sign up today for our daily email news service!

Sign up to our Daily Email News Service by clicking here now...

Southport & Mersey Reporter - leading the way for local news.
We where the UK's first online only newspaper!

All email addresses and information is held under the UK's Data Protection Act.

 
Highlighted events that are taking place this month:-

If you have an event and want to get it noticed, let us know by emailing us to:- news24@merseyreporter.com

Click on the event title displayed above to find out about lots more events, as well as dates & times!

Our websites in our online series.   Group navigation, information and useful none group links...
Southport TV - Our online video archive. Liverpool Reporter - Our online music station. Mersey Reporter - OUR HUB WEBSITE.
Southport TV Liverpool Reporter Mersey Reporter Formby Reporter

Add to Google

This is what the moon is doing tonight.  Click on to find out why.

See the view live webcamera images of the road outside our studio/newsroom in the hart of Southport.

Our live Southport Webcam.  To see click live, click on image.

SOUTHPORT CHAT

Show us your location
Please sign our map and let us know where you are  from....

.

News Room Phone Number

(+44)  08443 244 195
Calls will cost 7p per minute, plus your telephone company's access charge. 

Calls to this number may be recorded for security, broadcast, training and record keeping.

This online newspaper and information service is regulated by IMPRESS, the independent monitor for the UK's press.

How to make a complaint

Complaints Policy  -  Complaints Procedure  -  Whistle Blowing Policy

© PCBT Photography & PBT Media Relations Ltd. - Southport Reporter® is the Registered Trade Mark of Patrick Trollope