Officers from the Met’s Central North Violence Suppression Unit carried out a weapons sweep on a housing estate in N19 over the weekend and found several ‘zombie’-type knives hidden in various locations on the estate.
The shocking find came at a time when knife crime in London has been responsible for taking dozens of young lives.
The fact that more street gang members are hiding their weapons in stashes suggests that maybe stop and search is helping to deter people from carrying ‘zombie’ knives and other similar weapons.
Gang members and other street criminals will often hide their weapons so that if they are arrested, then officers won’t find them when carrying out Section 18 searches at their home addresses.
Whilst some people have tried to call for a reduction in the use of stop and search, the tactic often results in a decrease in the number of people carrying weapons.
In order to avoid being arrested whilst in possession of a knife or other bladed article, criminals will hide their weapon rather than being caught carrying them.
The family of Tashan Daniel have called for more stop and search after their 20-year-old son was stabbed through the heart after he ‘looked at’ his attacker the ‘wrong way’.
Tashan, a promising athlete, was murdered at Hillingdon Station in West London on 24th September 2019 after Alex Lanning, who had been released from prison on licence after stabbing another male, used a cerated blade to stab Tashan in the heart.
Tashan’s mother arrived on the scene just as paramedics were trying to save his life. But he tragically died a short while later.
After Lanning was found guilty of murder and was sentenced to life in prison, Chandima, Tashan’s father, said:
“The habitual carrying of knives by some young people didn’t really hit home until Tashan’s killing. The scary part is how readily they are to use them.
“If Lanning had been stopped and search on his way to the station, then we wouldn’t be having the conversation. It would be totally justified why a man like that would be stopped.
“I understand both sides of the debate, but until you’ve walked in our shoes, you don’t understand the importance of stop and search.
“We also question why Lanning was on licence after just serving two years. It doesn’t sit well with us.
“If he was being watched more carefully, Tashan’s murder probably wouldn’t have happened.
“London is really unsafe. It’s a shame because there was nothing I loved more than living in our area.”
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