Oldham mum living in fear due to youth 'gang' attacks

The mother, who wishes to remain anonymous for safety reasons, told The Oldham Times that her family has been "victimised" by a group of youths in the St Mary's area, where she has lived for more than 20 years.

She said: "You feel insecure, you start to become more vulnerable, because of the destruction that they cause to families, to anybody. They don’t respect anyone. They do whatever they want, on and on and on."

Doorbell footage of a car being attack. (Image: Supplied)

Having lost her husband a year ago, while her youngest child was just weeks old, the mother had spent the last 12 months trying to overcome the grief.

She said she was simply "looking for peace, happiness and joy" again when the attacks started.

The 43-year-old has experienced two attacks in the last two months, which she believes are related to a stolen bike and a local 'gang' feud.

She believes that she is being targeted as the rival group has mistakenly identified her as related of the bike thief.

During the first incident, she said a group of young men came to her house in balaclavas, "covered in black from head to toe", carrying machetes and attempted to smash her car.

Her daughter, who was revising for her GCSEs in the kitchen at the time, opened the window and was "threatened" by the gang. They then smashed the window and ran away.

The mother said she her home has been attacked twice (Image: Supplied)

The police were informed of the incident and door bell footage was handed over.

The St Mary's resident claims that officers initially informed her that there was not enough evidence and that the case would be closed. However, due to her "perseverance on the phone", she said another officer has since taken on the case.

A second incident took place just last week on June 16. She said the group came during the night with a hammer and again tried to smash the car, this time succeeding in causing damage.

She said that police were informed immediately and officers visited the house the next day.

In doorbell footage shared with The Oldham Times, a figure can be seen taking several swings at the car window and windscreen with a hammer. The video is time-stamped as 2.20am.

Damage to the window is visible, as well as to the wing mirror which is knocked off during the violent attack.

The resident provided other door bell videos of who she believes to be members of the group.

In one video, a young man knocks on the door and asks to speak to someone, while a group of other young men wait behind him.

Police have been contacted about the incident (Image: Supplied)

Another video, taken in the early hours of the morning, shows a young man loitering outside the house in the road. At one point, he appears to be signalling to someone off camera.

Chief Inspector Lee Parker from Greater Manchester Police's Neighbourhood Policing Team in Oldham said: “We are committed to working with the local community and partners to ensure we tackle those people intent on causing anti-social behaviour, through a problem-solving approach to ensure long-term solutions are achieved.

“I would encourage anyone who lives or works in the area to report any concerns they have so, this enables us to collect information and intelligence that we can use to target our response, investigate crime that maybe occurring, and to work with our partners to bring about a real long-term change to the area.”

The mother said living on her estate now feels like living "amidst a pack of wolves" and she looks forward to the day she can "pack up and leave" the area.

The mother said she her home has been attacked twice (Image: Supplied)

In the meantime, she hopes that raising awareness of the problems on the estate will help bring "peace" to the neighbourhood.

She said: "Something has to be done instead of just sitting down with hands folded, looking and seeing families suffering like this, and going through this mental and psychological situation.

"Families living under fear, children coping with fear. I’ve got children. How about when they go to school? How about when they go out? They can be targeted at any time, at any point.

"Something has to be done. A word has to be heard out there. This is all I’m doing. This is all I want. Nothing else. Let peace reign instead of stress and fear."