The mum of a teenager jailed for supplying fatal MDMA is warning of the county lines warning signs other parents should look out for.
Tammy Kirkwood's son was locked up in 2020 after giving the Class A drug to Leah Heyes, 15, who later collapsed and died. The mum claims her son had been groomed by county lines criminals and was pressured into selling.
And after it was revealed that more and more kids are turning to dealing to help their struggling parents, the mum is flagging warning signs.
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Tammy, from North Yorkshire, said: "Everybody thinks they have a particular child they go for and it’s not. My child was into sports, it could be a child with straight As. Children are vulnerable and that the cost of living crisis is going to make people fight for money.
“Kids are going to see mum and dad not being able to pay the bills which in turn makes the kids more vulnerable.”
Tammy has campaigned to raise awareness of the dangers of drugs and has called for stricter laws for dealing to children since Leah's death. And she said other parents should look out for the below warning signs amid the cost of living crisis.
She said: “The county lines people start telling them that mum and dad are against them, they shouldn’t listen to them. A very well-behaved child can become withdrawn, leaving the home at different times of the day or night and going missing.
“You start to see change to a really bubbly child who becomes quiet and reserved, they stop doing their regular routine or their grades start to get affected. They might start acting out more in school or not coming home straight after school.
“It can also be children that have ADHD or high-functioning autism, they watch those children and know how to exploit them.
“Different people to their typical peers start hanging around – if you have a 10-year-old, you have to ask yourself why is there a 15-year-old hanging around with them, or why is there a 20-year-old with a 15-year-old. It’s kids introducing kids, the older ones tell them to find kids and bring them in.
“You start seeing older people with cars around. If you start noticing different cars in the neighbourhood, that’s a massive thing.
“Their appearance changes...not everyone that’s a runner for the drugs gangs starts wearing trackies, they might stop caring about their appearance and not showering. They become fearful, I noticed with my son that the doors are always locked if he’s in the house.
“This sounds harsh but parents have to be wary of other parents, I thought I was doing a good thing and talking to the parent where my son was staying but then finding out later it’s not the original parent. A 20-year-old can sound quite old so you think you’re talking to a parent but you’re not and they’re not staying at the original person's house.
“People think exploiters look like drug dealers and might look rough and tough but in our experience, some of these people are business owners. Make sure you really talk to them and get a really good feel, it’s one of my regrets that I didn’t do that more often.
“Keep reporting everything to social care, the police and Crimestoppers as much as you can, no matter how many times you have to call them.”
Leah collapsed after taking MDMA in a car park in Northallerton in May 2019. She was rushed to James Cook Hospital, Middlesbrough, but tragically couldn't be saved.
Tammy's son was later arrested for dealing her the Class A substance. He was 17 at the time. He was jailed for 21 months at Middlesbrough crown court after pleading guilty to supplying, but was released after serving six months of his sentence.
Tammy said her son was plunged into the murky world of county lines dealing, which targets vulnerable teens, aged just 15.
She continued: “It makes me angry because my son’s story isn’t unique and it’s going to get worse. The government and the police know what is happening. It's only going to get worse.
“I’m angry and disappointed the government haven’t looked at a national county lines intervention, each police force has their own policies on how to deal with it. It’s just going to get worse, we’ve got cuts to social care, we don’t have enough social care personnel that know how to deal with county lines or the support needed."
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