‘The Communities Are Asking When Is Knife Crime Going To Stop? It’s Not Going To Stop Unless Something Is Done About It’.

Bereaved mother and anti knife crime campaigner Sue Hedges from the Ricky Hayden Memorial has spoken out in regards to the horrendous pain the family of murdered 14 year old Kelyan Bokassa now feel.

“It’s another child murdered on our streets, another child that will be just a statistic to add to London’s crime rates. His family will now be broken like my family is. The pain of having to bury your child is undescribable. He was just 14 years old and he lost his life on a street.

“When you lose a loved one to knife crime, not only is the pain awful, but there is very little help or support for you. Nobody actually cares. My family has never been offered any counselling to support us after we lost Ricky. Speaking to all the other mum’s, they have never been offered any either. There are so many things that we are faced with that we don’t even know where to begin. Aspects like dealing with a coroner. There is nobody there to help you.”

Sue lost her son Ricky in 2016, when he was macheted in the leg outside his own home in Marks Gate. Since then, Sue, Paul and their family have suffered ongoing trauma that will never heal.

“We know he is always in our hearts, but when we celebrate different festivities or events, he is not there and nothing can bring him back.

“Knife crime as we have said so many times, is an epidemic that no one cares about. Our youth are growing up in fear. The gang culture exists pretty much in most places. We blame children for being in gangs but we don’t really understand what goes on in their lives. It’s very easy to say ‘he was a gang member’, but then perhaps look at why he was.

“We must work together as communities to tackle these horrors or they will keep going. Gangs are everywhere, people who say they are not need a reality check. Children are afraid to go into different post code areas for fears of someone not liking their face, that’s how bad it is now.

“Once the mainstream media finish covering this awful incident, it will all fade and the poor family will be without their son.

“We need someone to step in now and help us begin to tackle knife crime, someone who cares about what is happening on our streets.

“My thoughts are with Kelylans mother and family. RIP young man.”

Photo credit: Crime Scene Images London.

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