Teenage gang member in balaclava threatened 'to stab me', says Lostock Hall dad

The dad-of-two, who wishes to remain anonymous, says he was walking his dog along St Cuthbert’s Road towards Wateringpool Lane in Lostock Hall around 3pm last month when four youths began swearing at him. One then threatened to stab him.

He said: “These lads say, ‘alright’ to you but they just want a reaction.

“As I went past, they started shouting at me. I’m partially deaf so I turned around and looked at them. The taller one opened his jacket and gestured towards it, saying he was going to stab me.

“I 100 percent felt threatened. You don't know what frame of mind they’re in.”

“One of the lads, who always has a threatening demeanour, is notorious for carrying something. He doesn’t even cover his face. He doesn’t care. I think the others hang around with him because they love his notoriety. They feel protected by him.”

The dad says two of the youths began swearing at him again when he later saw them next to Our Lady of Lourdes & St Gerard Majella RC Church in Lourdes Avenue.

He added: “I was zero threat to them that day. They’re just unruly. Something has got to be done [about them].They need to stop harassing the whole neighbourhood.

“If it was one of my kids], I’d be absolutely mortified. They’d never leave the house again.”

Despite reporting the incident to the police, he says: “I just believe [these youths] can get away with it and think it’s fun. That’s why people have zero faith [in the police] and no-one wants to report it.

“Nothing is going to happen unless they are physically caught doing something.

“What’s so frustrating is they know full well that the police can’t do anything because of their age.”

But, he adds: “They will probably do it to the wrong person one day and get hurt. They’re absolute nuisances. Their behaviour will only build as they get more confident.

“I feel sorry for them. In a few years time, they’ll either end up in prison, dead or looking back thinking, ‘What was I doing with my life?’”

Lancashire Post has contacted the police for comment.

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