REDLANDS teens are being groomed to become hooked on the highly addictive drug ice.
A 17-year-old, who is not being named for his protection, said he was part of a “gang’’ that hung out at Victoria Point waiting for students to leave school.
“We used to wait for them. They’d sit with us to have a smoke and then you converse, you talk,” he said.
The teen said they would exchange phone numbers and once they had built up a relationship he would get them hooked.
“It was a real bad decision. I’m ashamed of it, but it was so easy to make money.”
Earning up to $3000 a week, the teenager bought branded clothing and accessories, which was part of the attraction. “The other kids wanted to be like me.”
Having been at rehabilitation centres twice, the teen is now working with Sheldon-based addiction specialist and former police officer Georgia Phillips and her team at The Addictive World.
Ms Phillips said the teenager’s story was not a one-off. “Kids are brought into these gangs and they can’t get out because they’re using (drugs) and they’re earning big money, she said.
Sergeant Peter Moloney from Cleveland police station said police recognised that drugs were a problem throughout Queensland.
“We take it seriously and we are directing vast resources to combat the drug problem,” he said.
He called on anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
“We can only solve crime if we are aware of it,” he said. “We rely on the community to help us combat drugs.”
Having first smoked cannabis at 13, the teenager was offered ice shortly before his 14th birthday while on a bus from Carindale to Redlands.
He said the first time he took ice it felt amazing. “I felt like I was the smartest person in the world,” he said. “But then I couldn’t escape it. I was so addicted. The drug was using me, it wasn’t me using it anymore.”
In his desperation for drugs, he would take drastic measures for money.
He said there were no big consequences for criminal activity when he was younger.
“When I was 15 I got a warning for stealing a car,” he said. Now that he is 17 and faces jail if convicted, he is concerned.
Ms Phillips said the addicts they worked with were usually at a fork in the road where they faced prison.
“Nobody walks in willingly and just wants to give it up.”
The Alcohol and Drug Information Service can be contacted on 1800 177 833.
