Jackson "The Jemmy Boy" James: Crime kept me from a life of boxing
Petty thief Jackson “The Jemmy Boy” Jones admitted today that his devotion to small time crime saved him from a life of beating men senseless for money.
Speaking to reporters after finishing a 10 hour community service order for shoplifting and two counts of benefit fraud, Jones , 28, revealed that, “but for the grace of God”, he could well have ended up a professional boxer.
“I look at the likes of David Haye smashing young men’s faces with his fists in front of a baying mob of fight fans and realise just how lucky I am to be living this life,” he said.
While unemployed Jones spent much of his youth smoking drugs, drinking cheap alcohol and generally getting into bother on the streets of south London, many of his friends who joined local gyms were not so lucky.
Jones remembers seeing his pals turn their back on harmless but often lucrative activities like pickpocketing and car theft, and instead punch each other in the face and stomach in boxing clubs sometimes as often as three or four times a week.
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“Before they knew it, they were hooked,” recalled Jones. “They would think nothing of getting up at the crack of dawn and running five miles before putting on a pair of large padded gloves and beating fellow human beings around the head with their fists.
“Many of those boys got in too deep and before long they were being picked up by older boxing coaches and offered money to bust some other kid’s face up. They would travel the length and breadth of the country to beat up people. It was as relentless as it was senseless.
“I myself was once approached to have a fight at a local amateur club, but I just couldn’t do it. I knew it wasn’t right.”
Jones, instead, devoted himself to crime. He began running with gangs of like-minded individuals, starting small with acts of vandalism and anti-social disorder, before dabbling in Class C drug dealing, credit card fraud and theft. His expertise at prising open doors and windows earned him the nickname The Jemmy Boy.
“Shoplifting and vandalism saved me from myself in many ways, and kept me out of the boxing ring,” Jones told The News Grind.
“There was a time in my life when I could have ended up like many of my friends, pummelling the faces of young men for the dubious pleasure of a bloodthirsty public and a few quid.”
Detective Sergeant Muriel Muirs, head of youth crime policing in the capital, said Jones was a role model for many inner city youngsters tempted by boxing.
“The lad’s a habitual offender, but it is all pretty low level stuff and while he can be a little disruptive at times, we can easily keep tabs on him and no one is ever hurt,” she said.
“The same can’t be said of these boxers. The kids are dragged off the streets and into clubs where they are taught how to beat the living daylights out of each other and, in many cases, there is absolutely nothing we can do about it.
“Many of these kids have been attracted by easy money, but I just say look at the likes of Mike Tyson and where he ended up. Caused the police no end of bother that one.”
Jones’s last victim, retired post-mistress Enid Marshall, 86, of Peckham, was quick to voice her support of the petty crook’s determination to steer clear of the ring.
“Jackson has targeted me on a number of occasions, on the last one he took my purse from my shopping trolley when I wasn’t looking. But we’re only talking about £12.50, for goodness sake. I’d rather I was coming face to face with Jackson than a monster like Nikolai Valuev.”
The Jemmy Boy has now put his boxing nightmares behind him and is hoping to steer other kids away from the ring.
“I’ve met up with a few young lads while in custody and taught many of them a few basics like how to jemmy a window and disable a car alarm,” he said. “It gets their interest off boxing and into less harmful activities that might earn them a quid or two.
“If I’ve stopped just one young man from climbing into that boxing ring, then my efforts have all been worthwhile.”
