Wiltshire Youth Mentor shares his story of child criminal exploitation
Rhys was exploited by county lines gangs as a child
A Youth Mentor in Wiltshire - who was exploited by county lines gangs as a child - is sharing his story.
Rhys, who works for the child exploitation prevention charity, Escapeline, is working alongside Police as part of a campaign to stop children being exploited.
The Force is running it's 'Spot the Signs' campaign in an effort to protect the county's most vulnerable from being dragged into criminality.
Rhys was targeted shortly after his parents divorced when he was eight years old.
He went to live with his dad - who had developed a habit of drug use.
"I didn't want to be at home," Rhys told us, "It wasn't a good place for me, so I used to spend a lot of time out on the street."
Whilst on the streets, Rhys ended up meeting a group of older people, who he describes as 'probably not the best ones for to be with'.
It was from here that the exploitation began.
"It literally just started from them, offering me some money for a football and then me to hold things, collect money and to drop things off," Rhys said.
Despite moving to live with his mum, Rhys was still full of anger and trauma, which saw him sucked back into criminality.
"I wouldn't say that consciously. I was seeking that sort of stuff, but definitely subconsciously, I was directed into criminality," he said.
Fortunately for Rhys, he's been able to free himself of the criminal lifestyle and now helps prevent other children falling into the same traps he did.
He's urging young people to speak out, but says that is tough, as county lines gangs employ fear as a tactic.
Rhys said: "They want you to be scared of them. They want you to be fearful because that's the only weapon that they have is fear and we all know young people, even though they don't want to show it or say it, they do, they do feel it massively and if they're getting threats and stuff like that, it prevents them from leaving or speaking out."
Rhys told us early intervention is crucial, and says children and young people need to speak out.
He said: "They forget that they're still children, so it's giving them someone that they can take that pressure off their shoulders and get someone else to deal with it, such as a professional or an or an adult that is more equipped and nowhere to go to and know what advice to take rather than a young person feeling like they're alone."
Parents, children and schools can reach out to Escapeline for support through their website.