Two new films reveal true cost of knife crime
TWO new films showing the horrific impact of knife crime have been released by Leicestershire Police.
Their release follows a week-long policing operation of warrants and searches in the force area which resulted in seven people being arrested and 15 knives recovered.
Both short films relate to the murder in Albion Street, Leicester, earlier this year of Lauric Lebato, and are being released as part of the Force’s on-going #livesnotknifes campaign aimed at combating knife crime.
The first film is called “Lauric’s Final Minutes” and is a compilation of extensive CCTV evidence that shows the events leading up to the moment he is fatally stabbed. It is distressing to watch and carries a warning at the start.
The second film, a knife crime infographic video called “One Knife”, shows the statistical impact his murder had on two families, on two communities, and on the many different agencies involved in the investigation following his death.
Both films, produced with the support of Lauric’s father Tagbeu, are currently being made available as part of a wider package of educational materials to schools in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, for head teachers to screen at their discretion.
Detective Chief Inspector David Swift-Rollinson, who led the investigation into Lauric’s murder, said he hoped the films would help deter young people from carrying knives and also help to educate parents, carers, teachers and our communities about the dangers of carrying a knife.
He said: “Lauric’s murder was not the first knife-related homicide I have investigated, and unless people are brave enough to radically change their behaviour, I fear it will not be the last.
“Sometimes words alone are not enough to change people’s behaviour; that’s why I hope these two latest films may have more of an impact on some people who still feel it necessary or wise to carry a knife.
“I have witnessed firsthand, and too many times, the savage brutality that a knife can inflict on another human being.
“I have, all too frequently, seen the enormous and longterm impact a few seconds of thoughtlessness can have, not just on immediate families but on whole communities and countless others who get affected, often for the rest of their lives, by the tragic devastation.”
As a result of a week of action, staged by the force between October 29 and November 5, 17 knives and weapons were seized, including two swords and a zombie knife, and mobile plainclothes patrols were conducted in East Leicester, Coalville and Loughborough.