Five mothers tell their tragic stories as part of Crimestoppers ‘Hard Calls Save Lives’ campaign

Five mothers have relived the heartbreaking moments they had to tell family and friends that their sons had been stabbed to death.

As part of a new campaign aiming to tackle knife crime in London, the mothers recalled the ‘hardest calls’ they had to make following the tragic deaths of their sons.

One described how she was ‘breathless, helpless and weak’ as she relayed the news to her own mother.

‘It was the hardest call – I was out of breath and my stomach was tight,’ said Lorraine Jones, whose son Dwayne Simpson was stabbed to death in Brixton in 2014, at the age of 20.

‘Even when I was making a call my hands were shaking. I tried it three times, I was just so helpless and weak.’

Lorraine, a pastor who worked alongside her son to feed the homeless, is one of five mothers supporting Crimestopper’s ‘Hard Calls Save Lives’ campaign.

The campaign, supported by the Met Police, aims to tackle knife crime in the capital by encouraging family members to provide anonymous tip-offs to the charity.

The information can be used to help officers crackdown on knife crime. 

It comes as figures released in February revealed how offences have doubled in just six years – going above 50,000 for the first time since records began.

The Met Police also investigated 126 killings in the capital last year.

Speaking about the launch of the new campaign, Met Police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick said: ‘Making that one call could literally save the life of someone’s son or daughter.

‘We understand this is a difficult thing to ask – but you don’t have to name names and even a small piece of information could be vital.’ 

Becky Beston, whose son Archie Beston was 19 when he was stabbed to death in Kingston in February 2020 on a night out with friends, told how she had to call a stranger about getting him embalmed.

‘You should never have to use those words with your son’s name. Ever,’ she said.

‘If somebody would have made that phone call, my Arch would be here now.’ 

The campaign features short films of the mothers’ stories along with adverts on radio, websites and social media and is targeted at people in areas affected by violent crime.

It is particularly aimed at inspiring women – mothers, sisters, aunts – whose children, siblings, nephews or nieces may be on the fringes of knife crime to make a report if they know someone who carries a knife or where a weapon has been hidden.

Lillian Serunkuma, whose 15-year-old son Quamari Serunkuma-Barnes was knifed to death outside his school gates in 2017, recalled calling her aunt to let her know he had been stabbed.

‘She just screamed. That was the hardest thing about that day,’ she said. 

‘It can be hard to make the call to say someone is involved in knife crime, especially if it’s someone you know or love. But it’s so much harder if you don’t.

‘It’s almost as bad to lose a child or a friend to prison as it is to lose them if they’re killed. Either way, they’re going to suffer as a result of knife crime.’

Yvonne Lawson, whose 17-year-old son, Godwin, was stabbed to death in 2010, said she rang her sister after she was told he had died.

She said: ‘I just kept repeating ‘died, died, died’. Godwin was stolen away from us in such a terrible way.

‘My family is broken into pieces, just missing him. We didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye, and he’s never going to be there, he’s never going to be part of us anymore.

‘The least we can do is use his memory to change lives.’

And Jean Foster, whose son Christopher Foster, 34, was stabbed to death outside a London pub in 2010, said: ‘They told me Christopher had been murdered. 

‘We called nine or 10 times. Slowly, we came to the realisation that he was never going to call back.

‘People may think that keeping quiet keeps you out of their focus, but it empowers them. No one is safe if we keep quiet.’

Dame Cressida praised the ‘strength and courage’ of the mothers ‘who have relived the traumatic calls they had to make in hope that it will prevent other families suffering as they have’.

Crimestoppers chief executive Mark Hallas added: ‘Hearing the mums speak in such an honest, frank and heartfelt way about losing a son to knife crime is incredibly humbling.

‘I truly admire their courage and determination to warn others in their own words about the danger of not speaking up.’ 

The new campaign comes as it was revealed in February that knife crime offences have doubled in just six years to go above 50,000 for the first time since records began.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said that offences involving knives or sharp instruments rose by six per cent from 47,388 to 50,019 in England and Wales in the year before the first Covid-19 lockdown was imposed.

Of these offences, 22,012 (44 per cent) were for assault with injury or assault with intent to cause serious harm, and 21,961 (44 per cent) were used in a robbery.

However, NHS hospitals in England reported an eight per cent fall in admissions for assault by a sharp object between April 2019 and March 2020.

The ONS also found that homicides have risen seven per cent to 695 offences including the Grays lorry incident with 39 homicide victims in the same period.

Recent figures also show that knife crime soared by 25 per cent after the first lockdown was eased last summer and have sparked concerns of an ‘eruption’ of violence once current Covid-19 restrictions are lifted.

According to figures released earlier this year, the Metropolitan Police investigated 126 homicides in London, compared with 150 in 2019 and 133 in 2018. 

Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111 or at Crimestoppers-uk.org.