FORMER big-city gangsters have been asked to help restore

peace between two feuding gun gangs in Derby.

Police have enlisted the help of a team from Birmingham,

which includes reformed criminals, who will use their own

experiences of gang and gun crime to try to help stem the

trouble.

They will be given the names and addresses of Derby gang

members so they can visit them to try to resolve the dispute,

which has resulted in a number of shooting incidents in the

city in recent months.

The team is from West Midlands Mediation and Transformation

Services, which is led by former West Midlands police officer

Kirk Dawes.

He said: “We seek to manage the conflict to slow it down by

creating dialogue and better understanding.

“We're not saying people will love each other at the end of

it but we try to get people to realise the futility of extreme

violence or even murdering someone. We tell it like it is.”

Detective Superintendent Andy Hough, who heads Derbyshire

police's unit set up to deal with gun crime and gang activity

in Derby, says he believes there is more chance of the gangs

listening to people who have experienced the same kind of

lifestyle.

He said: “We want them to realise that for the 60 seconds it

takes to draw a gun, pull the trigger and shoot someone, it

could cost them their life too. At the end of the day, it's

about avoiding conflict and physical harm.”

The scheme is being funded by Derby Community Safety

Partnership and Det Supt Hough said officers were already

speaking to gang members in the city to encourage them to

attend meetings with the team.

Police will then give gang members' details, like addresses,

to the team, which will continue to visit them at their homes

independently to try to resolve matters.

It is hoped the team will be able to discuss the history and

full details of the conflict, such as individual disputes, with

those involved.

They will also use their own experiences to talk about the

dangers of gang feuds and the impact it can have on gang

members' families and friends.

For example, they discuss the possibility of relatives being

targeted for revenge attacks.

The team will also enlist the support of community leaders

to provide further guidance.

Det Supt Hough, who previously served as a senior officer in

Birmingham, said: “If an incident happens, the mediators will

cold-call at the home of the person they think is going to try

to carry out the retaliation to discuss the issue with them.

They will also speak to serving prisoners and we will provide

them with the details.

“If we can help anyone involved in the conflict to deal with

it peacefully, we will.

“For mediation to work, it needs those from all sides to

contribute.”

The shooting incidents began in Derby in late December and

police believe the majority are linked to a feud between rival

groups from the Allenton and Austin Estate/Sinfin areas of the

city.

Security was stepped up at the recent Caribbean Carnival, at

Osmaston Park, amid fears that gang members may use the event

to continue their row.

Police have also vowed to secure anti-social behaviour

orders for some individuals to restrict their movements and who

they can associate with.

But unlike in other cities, no-one has yet been killed as a

result of gang-related shootings in Derby.

In Birmingham, the feud between the Johnson Crew and Burger

Bar Boys gangs has hit the headlines on many occasions – most

notably after the deaths of student Charlene Ellis, 18, and

Letisha Shakespeare, 17, in Aston in January 2003.

The pair were shot by mistake in a drive-by shooting

connected to the feud. Four men were later convicted of the

shootings.

West Midlands Mediation Service was set up in 2004 by Mr

Dawes, who said it had been successful in resolving disputes

and saving lives in Birmingham.

He said: “We're not there to give information to the police,

we're there to deal with the argument.”