Ottawa parents trying to end teen swarmings in Orlans

Parents in Orlans are banding together to do something about teenage boys threatening other youths and stealing their clothes, bikes and cellphones.

Nolan Hann, 14, saidhe was circled by more than a dozen teenson Provence Avenue near InnesRoad last month.

One teenage boy was swearing andyelling at him to hand over his bike.

"He grabbed me by the neck," Hann said. "It's pretty terrifying."

Hann said he saw adults drove by without stopping to help. He was eventually able to bolt home on his bike and call his mother.

Anik Gnier said her son was frantic and crying, and that she told him to hang up and call police.

'It's scary': Mother says she fears for the safety of her kids after son was swarmed

8 years ago

Duration 0:41

Anik Gnier, whose son was swarmed by a group of teenage boys in Orlans, says the neighbourhood isn't as safe as it seems.

"It's scary," she said. "I live in the suburbs. I live in Orlans thinking it's a nice, safe neighbourhood. ... No one did anything. If they were afraid, they didn't have to stop, they could have just called 911."

Gnieris one of several parents in the neighbourhood using a new Facebook groupto spreadthe word about swarmingsand encouragewitnesses to call Ottawa police.

Next week, they're scheduled tomeet withpolice and the area's city councillor to give officialsa better picture of the problem. Police, meanwhile, saidthere hasn't been a spikein the number of swarmingsreported to police.

'It was very intimidating. I was shaking'

Lisa Plante, amother of two, saidshe was thevictim of a swarmingin broad daylight in a busy plaza.

"It felt like sexual assault," Plante said about last summer's incident. "Itwas very derogatory. It was very obscene."

I was trying to look confident and brave but on the inside I was trembling.- Lisa Plante, swarming victim

Plantewas inside a restaurant at Innes and Trim roads when she heard a group of teenage boys make a derogatory comment about women.

She saidshe glared at them andtold them it wasn't OKto speak like that. The teens then allegedly followed Planteacross the plaza and waited for her outside theLCBO.

"The second I walked out of the door they were instantly harassing me, yelling obscenities," she said.

"They were using language that was shocking to me.That these young boys would even have the courage to do so in broad daylight to a mom,to a middle-aged woman,it was justappalling."

There were five or moreteens who looked to be 15 or 16 years old and "had no fear," she said.

"I had never been in a situation like that before," Plante said. "I was very intimidated. I was shaking. I was trying to look confident and brave but on the inside I was trembling."

She thought to herself, what if that happened to mydaughter or one of her friends? "If I was that scared, imagine how scared they would be."

Plante saidshe called police after she drove off, but they didn't send a cruiser because the teens had already left the area.

Cases going unreported

Greg Shore saidhe's coached many teens who talk about being robbed and "terrorized" in a similar way.

Out of frustration, hehelped start aFacebook group called "Let's Make Orlans Safe Again," where parents can share accounts of swarmings.

Some parents toldCBCNews their children have stopped wearing expensive clothing outside or going into stores when they see groups of teens inside, and that youths are often afraid to notify anyone when something happens.

"Children are terrified to tell their parents," said Shore. "They'reterrified to say anything in the community because they fear repercussions when they go to school.

Children are terrified to tell their parents.- Greg Shore, community member

"They fear repercussions when they walk on the street. So they would rather say nothing, deal with the losses of their bicycles, their phones, clothing, as opposed to trying to make a difference."

Shore isnowspearheading an effort to create a neighbourhood watch program and flag homes as safe havens for teens to run to if they are swarmed.

'Certainly it's despicable'

Cumberland wardCoun.Stephen Blais saidtwo residentscalled him in the past week or so to expressconcernabout the issue.

"Certainly it's despicable," Blais said.

"Orlans is a very well-off community. There is no need to rob someone for their clothes or for their cellphone or what have you.

"Some of these kids might just need to have that police intervention to kind of set them straight, so hopefully they can go on to be more productive members of society."

Ottawa police Const. Andrew Worth saidthere have been some reported swarmings, but not to the extentthat's being described online.

"Our issue is reporting.For many reasons, residents are not reporting many issues they are discussing on social media, making a proper response difficult," Worth wrote in an emailed statement.

"Without a complete picture of the issues plaguing the community, a proper response may be delayed."