FEARS are growing that Yardie gangs could be moving into the North-East in an attempt to corner the crack cocaine and prostitution markets.

A report by the Chief Constable to Cleveland Police Authority says West Indian organised crime groups could already be working on Teesside. Last year, 32 Jamaican-born people were arrested in the area, compared with one the year before.

It is thought the groups travel to Teesside from London, Birmingham, and other areas in the Midlands.

Last night, the authority's chairman, Ken Walker, said the force was taking the threat seriously.

He said: "To them (Yardies), Teesside is pastures new with a market to be cornered in crack cocaine and prostitution, and we will not tolerate it.

"Teesside already has a problem with drug dealing and prostitution, and we do not want a further epidemic.

"If you look at recent cases that have been brought before the courts, there is enough substance to verify that these people are Yardies."

He urged people to be vigilant and call the police if they see a stranger to their area acting suspiciously.

However, Pete Widlinski, of the North of England Refugee Service, urged people not to assume that because someone is Afro-Caribbean they are a criminal.

He said: "There are many Afro-Caribbeans living on Teesside who are law-abiding and do not deserve to be prejudiced against."

Professor Dick Hobbs, a criminologist at the University of Durham, believes Yardie gangs are a myth.

He said: "It is not a crime group it is a generic term and is often used wrongly."