When will we see an end to KNIFE CRIME?

It's been 15 years since Robert Knox was stabbed to death outside a London club, yet knife crime statistics are only getting worse

- ASHLEIGH PAGE

He was on a night out with friends, celebrating what he hoped would be the start of a promising acting career. Robert Knox, 18, had just finished filming Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, in which he played Marcus Belby. But the revels ended in murder. During a scuffle, Robert was stabbed five times by Karl Bishop, then 21, and died in hospital from his injuries. In a heartfelt tribute, Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe wrote, ‘We are all so proud to have known you and devastated to have lost you.’

Despite Rob’s parents’ best efforts to raise awareness of knife crime, offences involving knives or sharp objects have increased by 34% from 2010 to 2022*.

In 2019, the Offensive Weapons Act was passed, with the updated law making it illegal to possess dangerous weapons in private, such as knuckledusters, flick knives and curved swords. But campaigners say it’s not enough, because although knife crime dropped during lockdowns, of the 679 homicides investigated in England and Wales between October 2021 and June 2022, 38% were a result of an assault using a knife or sharp instrument. Talking about knife crime, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said, ‘I refuse to accept that the loss of young lives is inevitable and will continue to be relentless in taking the bold action needed to put an end to violence in our city.’

Yet despite this and the efforts of many charities and initiatives, knife crime is still as prevalent as ever. Now, with Robert’s story being told in an ITVX documentary set to air on 23 February, we speak to his mother about her family’s struggle for change…

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