The report finds that during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic organised criminal gangs moved their exploitation of children into busier public places like supermarket carparks, where it was easier to conduct activity during lockdowns without arousing suspicion.
Youth workers and frontline child criminal exploitation practitioners also say that young people who had been coerced to carry drugs were forced to wear delivery driver uniforms or high vis jackets, allowing them to hide under the guise of legitimate activities.
Gangs used the promise of “easy money” to coerce children into carrying drugs as many vulnerable families struggled with increasing poverty due to the impact of the pandemic on the jobs market.
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