PLUMSTEAD: Former gangster warns kids away from crime

Dave Courtney, 49, was speaking exclusively to News Shopper after admitting possessing ammunition - a single bullet - without a firearms certificate.

The former debt collector arranged security at Ronnie Kray’s funeral and is thought to be the inspiration for Vinnie Jones’s character in the film Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.

He said: “Crime doesn’t pay. Greenwich is a naughty area.

“It’s out of control but the police will come out on top in the end.

“Young criminals are no longer fighting Sherlock Holmes, they are fighting amazing technology and they will end up in prison. It’s a guarantee.

“Kids have to realise when you are 15 years old you are a ‘troubled youth’ but a day later when you are 16 you become a ‘reoffending criminal’ and you are chucked in jail. It’s as simple as that.”

Mr Courtney, who lives in Chestnut Rise, Plumstead, now tours youth offending institutes here and abroad lecturing youths about the dangers of crime and its repercussions.

He has visited Australia, Jamaica, Spain and parts of south America.

He said: “I have taken drugs, I have sold drugs, I have hurt people and I have been in prison for it.

“I can persuade them crime does not pay as you will always get caught.

“They are more likely to listen to me rather than a vicar or a policeman because I have actually been there, done bad things and paid the price.”

It was after one of his lectures, at a charity event in Bristol, he was found carrying a bullet when pulled over by police in his BMW with the registration number BADBOY1.

Speaking after he was given an 18-month conditional discharge at Bristol Crown Court, he said: “I take deactivated weapons to my shows.

“Some of the guns go bang but nothing comes out of them.

“Unfortunately I didn’t have the paperwork for the bullet and so I got into trouble.”

The married father-of-six added: “I love doing my shows. There is something so addictive about seeing all the kids looking at you and hanging on to your every word.”

Mr Courtney admits he regrets his actions during his time as a gangster and says he feels lucky to have come through it with his life intact.

He said: “I hate the fact I hurt people as a debt collector.

“If one of my kids came home with their teeth in their hands then I know how upsetting that would feel.

“I regret I have caused pain for other parents but at the time I wanted bigger, better, newer and nicer, and selling drugs and debt collecting paid very well.”

He added: “I’m so lucky I have been able to retire for eight years and hang on to all my friends while doing something good with my life.”