A GANG of teenage yobs is running rampant around a quaint village – dishing out brutal attacks at random, it is claimed.
Many people in West Bergholt, near , , are said to be living in fear of the gang, all understood to be aged 15 or 16.
One mum – who did not wish to be named – described how they even harassed her seven-year-old daughter during a trip to the shop, leaving her “hysterical and crying”;.
She told The Sun: “They have made us feel as a community very on edge... and cause a lot of locals to just stay in.”;
And added: “We just don’t want to live in fear like this.”;
The majority of villagers we spoke to during our visit this week did not wish to talk about the gang due to fear of retribution.
However, Samantha Machin agreed to share footage of a brutal attack on her partner, in which he appeared to have a bottle smashed over his head.
The group of thugs can be seen, some with hoods up or masks on, surrounding him after he apparently asked them to stop breaking glass outside Orpen Memorial Hall, which houses a pre-school.
Mum Samantha said she’s also seen photos showing the injuries of another alleged victim – while a local shop has been raided and a string of criminal damage left in the thugs’ wake, it is claimed.
She said the don’t seem interested in putting a stop to the tirade, which has ramped up in recent months, with some people scared to leave their .
During the incident in which her partner was bottled at around 6.30pm on April 17, she claims she was also punched in the face.
Footage of her crying was later shared on .
She told The Sun: “They surrounded my partner and he put his arm up because one of them came right up to his face.
“Then he smashed a bottle over the back of his head and it all just went a bit crazy. They kept taking it in turns to attack him.”;
Samantha’s partner had been walking the family dog across the adjacent field when he initially confronted the gang, worried his pet or children would step in the glass, and was told to “f*** off”;.
The pair later returned and had a second encounter, with the group said to have been then trying to boot down a door into a public toilet block.
‘It just kept escalating’
Samantha’s footage shows some of the teens smashing the couple’s car, including partially shattering the windscreen.
She explained: “As we went back onto the field one boy tried to grab the phone back because I was filming him.
“As he tried to grab the phone, he punched me in the jaw. I think he was trying to punch the phone, I’m assuming.”;
She added: “It just kept escalating. It was weird, the main boy took his top off and then tried to throw more punches.
“He was gobbing off, just saying the most ridiculous things. ‘That’s my boy’, things like that. Just stupid. Other boys turned up and it just kept going on and on.”;
Samantha said she was later told by a local that one of the group had allegedly thrown a knife into their back garden on the same evening, which she handed into a nearby school.
She went on to say police “haven’t really been that involved”;.
Though one boy, aged 15, has now been charged over the incident, Police confirmed.
“They were running around the village all night and all day causing absolute mayhem,”; Samantha continued.
“They were throwing things in people’s gardens and shouting things...They were just terrorising everything.
“The fact that they were all walking around in balaclavas shows that they were out looking for trouble.”;
They were running around the village all night and all day causing absolute mayhem. They were throwing things in people’s gardens and shouting things...They were just terrorising everything
Samantha Machinlocal resident
One local, who lives on the edge of the park by the memorial hall, recalled how she was sitting down to a curry with her family when a policeman knocked on the door asking to search her garden.
“Somebody had seen him (a member of the gang) leap over the fence,”; she said, adding the officer then looked around for around half an hour.
Samantha said she has since found the identities of each of the gang, but she does not believe the police have taken any action outside of the charges against one boy.
Samantha posted about the attack on earlier this month and says others have come forward to share accounts of their alleged encounters with the gang.
She has also seen a photo of a boy’s face who is said to have been jumped by the thugs.
“It looks like he could’ve died, his face is deformed,”; she said. “He’s scared that more things will happen.”;
She claims a girl has recently had to move because the gang were harassing her.
“They’re just horrible bullies,”; Samantha said. “They seem to be roaming from area to area.”;
Referring back to her filming the attack on her partner, she added: “A couple of them tried to hide their faces, most of them didn’t care, they seemed to like it.
They’re just horrible bullies. They seem to be roaming from area to area
Samantha Machinlocal resident
“They were saying ‘what are you going to do? You can’t hit a kid.’ If anything, they’re bragging about it.
“These boys are out of control. The worst thing is, some of them have got hope, and come from decent families.”;
She went on to say: “I was a naughty kid, I can relate to getting drunk in the park but not weird stuff like this.
“It wasn’t the case that we didn’t want them drinking, they can do whatever they want. It was just we wanted them to clear the glass away and not smash it all over the floor.
“I don’t want to walk my dog and child through the glass.
“It could have ended very differently, and especially now I know one of them had a knife, it could have ended a lot differently.”;
Luckily, her partner was not seriously injured.
‘They’re all blaming each other’
Samantha said since she posted about the attack, she’s also had members of the gang contacting her.
“I’ve got the boys messaging me, in my inbox calling me names,”; she said.
“They’re all blaming each other. All this loyalty, not grassing each other up, you should see the messages just all blaming each other.”;
Samantha understands issues with some of the youths “has gone on for years”; but over the recent months “it’s been a bigger problem”;.
One local, who wished to remain anonymous, also told us: “West Bergholt is generally a lovely place to live and raise your children.
“I’ve been here nine years and never encountered any trouble at all until that group of youths.”;
She described them as “very intimidating”; whenever she walks past them loitering, adding they “cause a lot of locals to just stay in instead of going out for a nice evening dog walk”;.
She went on to say: “There have been many things vandalised by this group. They have made us feel as a community very on edge.”;
She described West Bergholt as “a very safe place to live”; in general but the gang appears to be increasingly trying to “intimidate the locals”;, often standing outside the Coop supermarket.
She continued: “I left my daughter in the car for two minutes and ran in to grab essentials. She is seven. I came back to her hysterical and crying as they had been shouting at her through the car. It was awful for her to endure that.
“The videos are absolutely distressing to watch. I don’t let my children play out now.
“As a community we just don’t want to live in fear like this, scared to go over to the park with our children.
“It is just wrong and the level of violence that was endured on the victims as well as the damage to the car is absolutely disgusting and very upsetting that someone has been subject to that behaviour in such a beautiful quiet little village.
The videos are absolutely distressing to watch. I don’t let my children play out now.As a community we just don’t want to live in fear like this, scared to go over to the park with our children
“I just feel so sorry for the trauma that was caused by little boys who think they can do what they like when they like.
“I just hope all involved get the correct punishment.”;
The gang are alleged to have recently stolen a crate of beer from the village’s Nisa Local shop.
A store worker told us: “Last week, the whole group was outside. They were just sitting outside in a group of about six or seven.
“Then two or three boys came in and took a crate of beers and they were gone. They just ran. The boss called the police. They said they will come soon.
“I think they are local. They often came into the shop before to buy stuff.”;
Emily Balls, who runs a cake stall for a local bakery, said she saw posts about the attack after it was shared on Facebook.
She said: “It’s very very surprising.”;
She added that many of her customers are elderly and she is glad most don’t use as “I reckon they would probably be rather scared”;.
“The village is very small, very quaint. Lovely locals,”; she added. “The loveliest people you’ll meet around Colchester to be honest. It’s generally a very very nice area.”;
Essex Police said officers attended the scene outside the memorial hall on April 17, and later arrested a 15-year-old boy, who now faces charges of assault by beating and criminal damage.
No other teenagers have been charged and police say their is continuing.
The teenager – who cannot be named for legal reasons – was due to appear before Colchester Magistrates’ on Friday (May 2).
Councillor Sara Naylor, whose Lexden ward includes West Bergholt, told the Colchester Gazette: “I’m very sorry to hear what happened to this couple in a disturbing, but thankfully rare, incident and offer my support and best wishes to them.
“I am determined, along with Sir Bernard Jenkin MP who represents West Bergholt’s residents, to understand its root cause.
“We must prioritise all possible measures to ensure families continue to feel safe to enjoy village life.
“Sir Bernard and I will be meeting as a matter of urgency to consider our next steps.”;
Police investigation continues
The force told The Sun: “We made an arrest and secured charges against a teenage boy after reports of an assault and criminal damage in West Bergholt.
“It was reported that, at around 6.45pm on Thursday 17 April, a group of suspects were smashing bottles outside West Bergholt Social Club, in Lexden Road.
“The group reportedly became hostile, assaulting a man and causing damage to a vehicle.
“Thankfully no serious injuries were reported.
“Officers attended and an area search resulted in an arrest.
“Charges of assault by beating and criminal damage have been secured against a 15-year-old boy, from Colchester.
“He is due to appear at Colchester Magistrates’ Court on Friday 2 May.
“Our investigation into this incident is ongoing.
“We’re aware of and are assessing footage concerning this incident and have been conducting patrols in the area.
“Anyone with information which could assist us should get in touch.”;
‘Second suspect identified’
Inspector Taks Shah, of Colchester Neighbourhood Policing Team, went on to tell us: “My officers swiftly attended after we were called to reports of an assault and criminal damage outside West Bergholt Social Club, in Lexden Road, on Thursday 17 April.
“Although thankfully no serious injuries were reported, this matter was taken very seriously.
“After arriving at the scene, officers spoke to the victims, sought out witnesses, searched the area and soon made an arrest.
“A 15-year-old boy has been charged and will be dealt with by the courts.
“Work has continued since then, both to establish the background of the group involved and to deter any repeat incidents.
“As a result of this work, a second suspect has been identified and is due to be interviewed.
“My team are engaging with the social club to understand what we can do to ensure our community feel safe and reassured around our response.
“I also allocated officers for increased patrols around West Bergholt to get a sense of the concerns felt by residents and to offer that reassurance around our investigation.
“I’m really keen that we prevent further incidents of this nature and I hope people in West Bergholt recognise that this is a priority for us.
“I’m always really keen to hear from anyone around ongoing concerns, issues and offences – get in touch with us and we will respond and direct resources where they are needed.”;
Those contacting police should cite reference: 42/52046/25.
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