Can Kelyan’s story save lives? Last week the 14-year-old was stabbed to death on a London bus. His mother hopes that speaking out will help prevent more deaths.
Death of boy who carried knife at nine
Can Kelyan's story save lives? Last week the 14-year-old was stabbed to death on a London bus. His mother hopes that speaking out will help prevent more deaths.
"It feels like every day there is a stabbing," said the tearful mother. "When I came to this city, I remember meeting a mother who had lost her child. That was 30 years ago. And now that woman is me."
Marie Bokassa's son Kelyan died after being stabbed on a bus in LondonThe capital city of the United Kingdom. It has a total population of 14 million. last Tuesday. She says the city feels like a war zone.
Marie describes Kelyan as a bubbly, friendly boy. But by the age of six, he was "labelled as gang-affiliatedLinked.". His bag was searched every day at his primary school; one day he was caught with a knife.
After being diagnosedWhen a doctor declares that a patient has a condition or illness. with diabetesA medical condition causing there to be too much sugar in the blood. , Kelyan was taken into careWhen a court decides that a child can no longer be cared for by their family, and they must be cared for by others, such as foster parents. . But his mother says that for a year he lived on the streets and did not go to school.
When he came back to her two years ago, he was "underweight, very hungry, tattooed and exposedNot protected from something bad. to drugs".
She tried to keep him away from gang members, but he "still had one foot on the streets". He was due to appear in courtA place where matters of the law are decided by judges or juries. later this year, accusedClaim that someone has done something wrong. of bringing a machete into school.
Gangsters target vulnerableat risk of being harmed boys like Kelyan to carry drugs for them. Between 2017 and 2023 police carried out 49,326 arrests of under-16s, with 7,992 of those in London. Some of the children are as young as 10.
Last year 10 London teenagers were fatally stabbed and another was shot dead.
But there is some hope: the number of deaths was down from 21 in 2023. And charities are working hard to help children escape from gangs.
Can Kelyan's story save lives?
Yes! It is rare for parents to speak out as Marie has done. By talking about Kelyan's life she has helped people to recognise the signs that a child might be being targeted by a gang.
No! Only taking down the gangs will stop the murders. The gangsters who groomTo prepare someone for a specific activity. It often has a sinister connotation, being linked to criminals who befriend young people in order to encourage them to take part in criminal activity or to make them into victims of criminal activity. teenagers do not care what happens to them - if one is arrested or killed, they simply find another to take his place.
London - The capital city of the United Kingdom. It has a total population of 14 million.
Affiliated - Linked.
Diagnosed - When a doctor declares that a patient has a condition or illness.
Diabetes - A medical condition causing there to be too much sugar in the blood.
Taken into care - When a court decides that a child can no longer be cared for by their family, and they must be cared for by others, such as foster parents.
Exposed - Not protected from something bad.
Court - A place where matters of the law are decided by judges or juries.
Accused - Claim that someone has done something wrong.
vulnerable - at risk of being harmed
Groom - To prepare someone for a specific activity. It often has a sinister connotation, being linked to criminals who befriend young people in order to encourage them to take part in criminal activity or to make them into victims of criminal activity.
Death of boy who carried knife at nine

Glossary
London - The capital city of the United Kingdom. It has a total population of 14 million.
Affiliated - Linked.
Diagnosed - When a doctor declares that a patient has a condition or illness.
Diabetes - A medical condition causing there to be too much sugar in the blood.
Taken into care - When a court decides that a child can no longer be cared for by their family, and they must be cared for by others, such as foster parents.
Exposed - Not protected from something bad.
Court - A place where matters of the law are decided by judges or juries.
Accused - Claim that someone has done something wrong.
vulnerable - at risk of being harmed
Groom - To prepare someone for a specific activity. It often has a sinister connotation, being linked to criminals who befriend young people in order to encourage them to take part in criminal activity or to make them into victims of criminal activity.