Four men charged after drive-by slingshot attacks on strangers across Brisbane

Police have charged four men after a series of alleged drive-by attacks using handmade slingshots on members of the public across Brisbane's western suburbs.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-06-11/brisbane-slingshot-attacks-drive-by/106783882

#Assault #Crime #Police #AntisocialBehaviour

DYFED-POWYS: Police don’t fully understand young adult crime in their own area, watchdog finds

Dyfed-Powys Police does not fully understand the pattern of crime committed by young adults in its own force area, a review by the region’s policing watchdog has found.

The review, by the Police and Crime Commissioner’s Select Committee, looked at how well crime and anti-social behaviour services support 18 to 25-year-olds across Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire and Powys.

It concluded that the force “does not fully understand their crime and ASB offending age profiles” — a gap the committee says makes it harder to know where help should be aimed.

When the review began, the force was unable to provide a breakdown of anti-social behaviour offences by the age of the offender at all.

In a further gap, the gender of offenders aged 18 to 25 was recorded as “unknown” or left blank in 60% of certain out-of-court outcomes during 2024.

The committee said this lack of detail made it harder to judge whether different approaches were needed for different groups, and where intervention would work best.

It has recommended the force build a dedicated profile of crime by this age group, and update its data systems so that age is routinely recorded across all its figures.

The review also raised concerns about how often young adults are steered into help instead of prosecution.

A type of resolution known as Outcome 22, which diverts offenders into education or other intervention rather than court, was used just three times for 18 to 25-year-olds in the whole of 2024.

By contrast, it was used 142 times for under-18s.

The committee asked whether the diversion schemes were simply not in place for adults, or whether officers were “less inclined to promote diversion after an offender turns 18”.

It also highlighted what happens when young people turn 18 and existing support falls away.

Council youth services often stop at 18, while the Probation service generally only becomes involved once a young adult has already offended — leaving what the report describes as a gap over who is responsible for this age group.

One young person who responded to the review said they had lost a support worker they had bonded with. “I was arrested for anti-social behaviour … the services aren’t long enough,” they said.

The review found young adults were an outlier in one respect — mental health. The force reported a rise in people aged 16 to 25 coming to police in crisis, often linked to self-harm, a trend it said had been climbing since the Covid pandemic.

The report pointed to the importance of agencies being able to respond, referencing the independent review into the 2024 knife attack at Ysgol Dyffryn Aman in Ammanford, in which a pupil was later sentenced for attempting to murder two teachers and a fellow pupil.

In its response, Dyfed-Powys Police acknowledged a training gap and said a dedicated trainer and analyst would be brought in to improve how officers identify and refer young people into support.

The force pointed to its INTACT early-intervention programme, which works to steer those up to 25 away from serious violence and exploitation, and to its first dedicated mental health conference, held in 2025.

Among the services praised by young people was Swansea City AFC Foundation’s Premier League Kicks, which uses free football sessions to engage young people and was one of the best-known schemes in the survey.

Police and Crime Commissioner Dafydd Llywelyn said the review had given “an important area a spotlight”, and that listening to young adults’ voices had been central to shaping its recommendations.

The Select Committee will ask the relevant agencies for an update on progress in six months.

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Dyfed-Powys Police boost patrols to crack down on rural crime
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Ifan Charles named preferred candidate for Dyfed-Powys Chief Constable
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Teenage girl sentenced to 15 years for attempted murder at Ammanford school
The conclusion of the Ysgol Dyffryn Aman case.

MUMBLES: Plaid MS calls on politicians to cut ties with ‘toxic’ far-right group over skate park racism video

A Plaid Cymru MS has called on politicians across all parties to cut ties with a far-right group, after it posted a video about the NHS doctor racially abused near Mumbles skate park.

Gwyn Williams MS, one of the three Plaid Cymru Members of the Senedd for Gŵyr Abertawe, said the group should be shut out of mainstream politics altogether.

His intervention puts the focus on his constituency counterpart Francesca O’Brien MS, the Reform UK member who was among the first politicians to condemn the original abuse. Asked whether she would join the call and for her view on the video, O’Brien set out the steps she has taken since the incident.

Dr Haroon Ali, a Swansea NHS doctor, described being subjected to racist abuse near the skate park on Saturday 16 May while leaving with his two sons, aged five and two. He said three teenagers on bikes and scooters shouted a racial slur at the family repeatedly, and South Wales Police are investigating the incident as a hate crime.

In his original public account, Dr Ali said he had “no doubt” that certain local politicians had contributed to a rise in overt racism in the area, and called on them to stand firm in opposing it.

Williams said Voice of Wales had since produced a video that he described as victim-blaming the doctor. He said the group had targeted Dr Ali because of his activity for the Labour Party — something Williams said “in no way lessens what happened” and had made the episode worse for the family.

“I believe the Voice of Wales had no place in the legitimate political processes of our country and it behoves all politicians to distance themselves from this toxic group of people,” Williams said.

He said the responsibility for challenging racism lay with everyone. “It is our duty to call out racism whenever we see it and that includes with our own friends and family,” he said. “The path to an equal society begins at home.”

Williams added that the incident did not define the city. “Swansea is a good city full of good people and the extremists do not represent us,” he said.

He said he could not comment on the specifics of the case because it was a police matter, but urged anyone who experienced racist abuse to report it and not to be deterred by far-right activity online.

O’Brien, a former Mumbles councillor who was named Reform UK’s shadow minister for Local Government, Housing and Planning this month, condemned the abuse in the strongest terms when the story first broke.

In a statement to Swansea Bay News this week, she said: “Racism is intolerable, unacceptable, and has no place in our communities or anywhere in society.” She said her priority had been to support those affected and to bring people together.

O’Brien said she had invited Dr Ali to work with her on a constructive community response, and had not wanted the matter to “descend into an angry social media debate that ultimately achieves very little and risks creating further division.”

She said she had contacted the local Neighbourhood Policing Inspector to offer her support, and that the inspector had not been aware of the incident when they spoke. Police have since shared a social media appeal for witnesses.

O’Brien said that on 20 May she had given Dr Ali several dates when she would be available to meet, and that she was “currently awaiting a response” from him.

She also said she had been in contact with Mumbles Community Council, which manages the skate park, about CCTV. O’Brien said she had learnt that Swansea Council had not granted the community council permission to use nearby lampposts to install cameras, and that she would continue to press the matter.

In her response, O’Brien focused on the practical steps she has taken rather than the video or Williams’s call for politicians to disavow the group. She said that “while other politicians are keen to discuss other media outlets and are clearly more interested in me thanking members of the public, on a post I was tagged in, I am getting on with the job.”

Williams was elected for Gŵyr Abertawe on 7 May, when Plaid Cymru topped the poll in the constituency.

Voice of Wales said it was an independent media team that questioned politicians of all parties, and rejected the idea that anyone needed to “cut ties” with it. “That’s easy — there are no ties. We don’t work with any party,” it said, adding that it was entitled to approach elected representatives and ask questions as a free press.

The Chief Officer of Mumbles Community Council said they were “deeply concerned” by reports of racial abuse in the community, adding that behaviour leaving people feeling intimidated or unwelcome “has no place here.”

The community council urged people to report any hate-related incidents to police, and asked that online discussion remain “calm, constructive and respectful” rather than becoming “politically divisive.”

It also pointed to positive work locally, including the Flip the Streets project, which challenges racism and anti-social behaviour through youth engagement and art. A community mural day was due to be held at the skate park on Sunday, with young people helping to transform the site.

Anyone with information about the incident on Saturday 16 May can contact South Wales Police on 101, quoting reference 2600152970. Information can also be passed anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Related stories from Swansea Bay News

MUMBLES: ‘My sons were shocked and scared’ — NHS doctor speaks out after racist abuse near Mumbles skate park
The Swansea NHS doctor’s account of the abuse that sparked a police hate crime investigation.

SWANSEA: Francesca O’Brien handed housing and planning brief as Reform UK names its first ever Senedd shadow cabinet
The Gŵyr Abertawe MS’s appointment to Reform UK’s first shadow cabinet.

Funding secured for Mumbles skatepark
How more than £270,000 of National Lottery funding helped build the skate park.

Community council asks for views on Mumbles skatepark
The consultation on the park’s future development.

Amsterdam Moves to Rein In “Fatbikes” With Park Ban

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://europeanconservative.com/articles/news-corner/amsterdam-moves-to-rein-in-fatbikes-with-park-ban/

BRITON FERRY: Police throw a security ring around the docks all weekend as fears grow of bank holiday rave

Police have moved to lock down Briton Ferry Docks for the entire bank holiday weekend after fears grew of a potential illegal rave in the area.

South Wales Police have brought in special powers — known as a Section 35 dispersal order — that let officers tell anyone they suspect of being there for trouble to leave the area. Anyone who refuses can be arrested on the spot.

The order came into force on Friday evening and runs until 3pm on Sunday — meaning officers have the power to clear the docks throughout the warmest weekend of the year so far.

Police say there will be a heavy uniformed presence around the docks all weekend, both day and night.

The crackdown covers the dock area on the eastern bank of the River Neath, close to the M4 and the Briton Ferry bridge — a quiet, semi-industrial spot that police say has previously been targeted by people organising illegal music events.

So-called raves — unlicensed music gatherings, often held in remote or industrial locations — have become a particular concern over bank holiday weekends, when organisers count on long nights, good weather and the chance of getting in before police can shut them down.

Sergeant Molly Llewellyn, of South Wales Police, said the force understood people wanted to enjoy the bank holiday — but warned there were limits.

She said: “With the forthcoming bank holiday weekend and the associated warm weather forecast, it is recognised that many individuals will wish to socialise and enjoy this period. However, it is essential that all such activities take place in a safe and lawful manner.”

She added that illegal raves were not just a problem for the people attending, but for the wider community.

“Unlicensed music events, commonly referred to as ‘raves’, present significant risks not only to those in attendance but also to the wider community,” she said. “These risks include — but are not limited to — increased levels of anti-social behaviour, public disorder, violence, drug and alcohol misuse, and the presence of unsafe environments.”

People are being warned not to head to any unlicensed event they hear about over the weekend — and anyone who knows of one being planned is being asked to tip off the police.

Sgt Llewellyn said: “Members of the public are strongly advised not to attend such gatherings. Additionally, anyone with information relating to these activities is encouraged to report it to the police.”

A Section 35 order can be put in place for up to 48 hours at a time. The Briton Ferry order will run for about 72 hours in total — meaning police will have extended or renewed the powers to cover the full bank holiday.

As well as ordering people to leave, the powers also let officers seize items being used in anti-social behaviour — for example, sound equipment that could be used at an illegal event.

Anyone with information can call South Wales Police on 101, message them on social media, or pass tips anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Always call 999 in an emergency.