VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — We all know the internet has positives.
"It's 2024 that's where life is, you know," said Kieran Chifokoyo of Virginia Beach. "Sometimes social media is a good platform to make friends or build communities, find niches if you're into specific things. Usually, I just use it to find people who have like interests."
And it has negatives too.
"What do you see [online] that's concerning?" News 3 reporter Erika Craven.
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"Violence," said Chifokoyo. "Other things I'm not going to mention on camera, but there are very questionable things that get posted online, you know, regarding illegality things and other things of that manner. Most people just swipe off. It's kind of become a common thing now."
"Do you ever worry something that happens online will translate to real life?" asked Craven.
"In my life, no. But I do worry about other people. Young girls and boys," explained Chifokoyo. "It's important that not only you, but people with children, that they're having a safe environment they can navigate you know."
"[Kids are] on IG and we see them," Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate told News 3 Wednesday. "They have Glocks with Glock switches. They have extended magazines. They're 14, 15, 16 years old. We see it every day."
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Virginia Beach Police told News 3 they're seeing too many concerning posts. They're asking parents to check in on their kids online and in person and bring in weapons – no questions asked.
"We have to have some intervention," said Chief Neudigate. "If we can get with a parent and they want to relinquish that firearm. We will take it no questions asked. If you find a gun in your kid's room bring it to us. We just want the gun. We don't want it in their hands. We don't want them to have the opportunity to pull the trigger."
Community activist Bilal Muhammad thinks about his family when asking parents and others to take an active role.
"[My grandchildren] tell me, 'Grandad, you're overprotective,'" said Muhammad. "Yes, I am. I have to be. We have to be. Because there is so much going on today. If we don't stand up and become more active in our home, our community, engaging with the children, talking to them, working with them, playing with the children, showing them the right way to play, showing them the best direction to go in, if we can do that we can become more responsible as adults helping our children to move away from violence and crime taking place in our community."
Watch related story: 5 out of 7 homicides in Virginia Beach in 2024 involved people under 18 years old
And there's help out there for parents as they work to keep their kids safe.
"So the world in which we live in, I think it's very challenging just because [parents] don't see [their kids] all day," said Seth Foster, division youth operations director at YMCA of South Hampton Roads. "They're in school. They're in extracurricular activities. It can be hard for them to [keep an eye on their kids at all times] so you have to partner with the community, the mentors, the coaches, the advocates to make sure they're well taken care of."
That means checking in with kids both on and offline.
Those at the YMCA say one in-person option for parents to help their kids learn and grow is free programming for teens.
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"Our communities are coming together and working together to really try to build more offerings, more opportunities, more outlets for them because they need that," said Foster. "They need that more than ever. That is our future. They have a great potential. I think it helps us develop them in skills the need to become better and continue to grow as citizens."
Community members and police say they just want kids to have a safe summer.
For more information on the YMCA's programming visit their website.
