As Raleigh grows, so does it's problem with gangs. Following this weekend's incident at Triangle Town Center involving up to 300 teens, Raleigh's police chief admits that a lot of the crime in this area is the result of gang activity.

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Although Chief Harry Dolan wouldn't put an exact percentage on the amount of gang-related crime, he says it's a large and troubling amount.

"The gang issue in Raleigh is significant," said the chief in briefing with reporters Monday.

And Chief Dolan said the appeal of gangs is growing among some segments of the area's young population.

"We as a community have to do more proactively to dispel young people from believing that its a style of life that they should be living," he said.

This weekend's melee at the Triangle Town Center might have been the public's first indication of just how serious the gang problem has become in our area, but Chief Dolan said much of the serious crime happening in the capitol city can be traced back to gangs.

"Our armed robberies are significantly up. There's a lot of criminal activity we have to address," he said. "We've seen far too many young people involved in violent criminal activity and we see the involvement of gangs in that."

But gang activity isn't confined to Raleigh. It's a regional problem and law enforcement says to thwart it, you need a two-pronged approach: more aggressive police work, and finding ways to prevent kids from entering gangs.

"I think it's important that we invest in after-school programs like boys & girls clubs, and other efforts to make sure we give kids things to do," said North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper . "We need to give them a reason to stay away from these gangs, because gangs continually try and recruit them."

Some of those prevention efforts are being funded by the federal government which recently awarded Raleigh and Durham a $2.5 million grant to develop anti-gang initiatives.

"We all have to work together," said Chief Dolan. "Educators, clergy, community. That's what the gang grant is all about, brining all the players to the table. "That will be our future best hope." 

Meanwhile, in the short term, the chief says mall security will be increased this weekend. He said he's also advising the mall to impose some kind of curfew on teens at certain hours.

The ultimate decision on that curfew will be up to Triangle Town Center. Officials there have not indicated what they will do.

For more information on the Wake County Gang Prevention Partnership, call (919) 256-0919.


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