Birmingham brothers banned from drill music videos glorifying crime

Kareem (left) and Theo White appeared in several drill music videos on YouTube, police say

Two brothers have been banned from appearing in drill music videos encouraging gun and drug crime, police said.

West Midlands Police has secured what the force describes as gang injunctions against Kareem and Theo White.

The Birmingham pair feature in several clips on YouTube in which members of a city gang make coded threats at rival groups, the force said.

The brothers have also been banned from entering parts of the city centre.

If either break the orders, which run for two years, they could face a jail sentence or fine.

The injunctions, granted at Birmingham County Court on 14 May, ban them from "creating or publishing any audio-visual material that may reasonably be seen as inciting or encouraging crime or gang related violence or membership", police said.

Drill music has always been controversial, with some people saying it glorifies and encourages violence between rival gangs.

However, others have argued it offers some of the country's poorest residents an escape route.

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In one video, officers said Kareem White, 27, rapped about driving into opposition territory in a stolen car and shooting rivals dead.

While they said 32-year-old Theo White featured in at least three clips.

Det Insp Dawn Burns said there was no evidence the videos directly caused disorder but the words "encourage and glorify gang-related violence".