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Killer's internet gallery of shame
BRANDISHING a terrifying baton with metal spikes at the end, his face obscured by a mask, this is convicted murderer Reece Mendez showing off with pals.
In other photographs, the young thug poses with a baton, knife and knuckle duster.
They were among snaps posted on the internet by the Parson Cross Crew which were uncovered by police investigating the stabbing of Dale Robertson, set upon after intervening in a trivial row over the theft of computer games.
Co-defendants in the case are shown posing with knives, batons and a piece of wood. And other youths are pictured with baseball and cricket bats, and even a sawn-off shotgun.
But the pictures were never seen by jurors at the trial of 18-year-old Dale's killers Mendez and Seaon Thompson, and five others involved in the violent disorder, in Rokeby Drive, Parson Cross, last September.
The Crown Prosecution Service decided not to admit them as "evidence of bad character", in the trial at Sheffield Crown Court which ended earlier this month.
Mendez, 18, of Yewgreave Crescent, Ecclesfield, must serve a minimum of 11-and-a-half years and Thompson, 16, 10 years, after both were found guilty of murder on the grounds of joint enterprise.
Less than a fortnight after the trial concluded, the photographs of the Parson Cross Crew have now been displayed together on social networking website Facebook, at a page called 'The Parson Cross Crew Named and Shamed'.
It has been created by estate resident Morag Kendo - not her real name - to help police gather evidence against the thugs.
She said: "This group has been set up to name and shame the so-called Parson Cross Crew who have caused everyone living in the area to be concerned.
"I ask for anyone with pictures or videos of these people to post them."
She also appealed for any other information of crimes involving gang members.
"This group is the tip of the iceberg on getting to know the trouble makers who make our societies uninhabitable, where good people live in fear.
"If we know who these people are we can call the police and give their name, helping the police to get the convictions against these people and eventually getting them off the streets for good," she said.
Photographs also show Spencer Jessop, 17, of Crowder Avenue, Southey Green, convicted of violent disorder in relation to Dale's death posing with a knife.
Travis Hurst, 18, of Browning Drive, Foxhill, cleared of Dale's murder but convicted of violent disorder, is pictured alongside armed youths but he is not shown carrying a weapon himself.
Hurst, who attacked Dale, 18, from Ecclesfield, with a metal pole, was locked up for two years, while Jessop must serve 10 months in custody.
The yobs are shown at locations including Ecclesfield Park and outside shops on the estate, where they are carrying cricket and baseball bats.
A close relative of Dale, who asked not to be named, said: "The pictures show exactly the kind of people these youths are and they should have been used as evidence at the trial.
"They show the clear contrast between them and Dale. Pictures of him on the internet show him having fun with his friends, doing handstands and backflips."
Det Supt Richard Fewkes, who headed the investigation into Dale Robertson's murder, said: "As part of the investigation, we became aware of a number of images that featured the defendants allegedly carrying weapons.
"It was a decision of the prosecuting counsel and the court that they would not be used to form bad character evidence."
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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