For almost twenty years, the most intense and
prolonged gang war in British history has raged on the
streets of Manchester. Warring factions have left at
least forty people dead, scores injured and made
headlines across the world. The gangs vicious conflicts
for control of drugs turf, protection rackets and door
security have blighted the reputation of one of Europe's
most dynamic and entrepreneurial cities and caused the
coining of sinister epithets such as `Gangchester' and
`Gunchester.' Investigative author Peter Walsh reveals
the inside story of the north-west crime mobs and their
internecine feuding. With unprecedented access to gang
members and police officers, he traces the roots of the
gangs and focuses on the emergence of the city's four
main gangs - the Cheetham Hillbillies, the Doddington,
the Gooch and the Salford Lads and tells how the
Cheetham Hill, Gooch and Doddington crews fought for
control of the Moss Side drug trade and how the much
feared Salford criminals fought for control of pub and
club doors and brought the region's licensed trade to
its' knees. Gang War also exposes for the first time,
the new breed of young gangbangers - the Young Firm from
Salford, the machine gun-toting Young Longsight Soldiers
and the dreaded Pit Bull Crew, led by its fearless young
leader, Tommy Pitt. Gang War reveals how a new, US-style
gang culture evolved in Manchester, unlike anything seen
before in the UK and as gang culture spreads to other
British cities, the book is a powerful and timely
account of an extraordinary crime phenomenon. |
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