'I left Wolverhampton after my son was knifed to death' - Ronan Kanda's mother speaks out after new law announced

Pooja Kanda, who has been a vocal campaigner against knife-crime since the murder of her 16-year-old son in a case of mistaken identity in Wolverhampton, spoke to the Express & Star as the Government announced a package of new measures which will be named Ronan's Law.

Ronan was stabbed yards from his home in Lanesfield, Wolverhampton, by two teenagers who mistook him for another boy. 

Mrs Kanda revealed she no longer lived in the West Midlands, saying she did not feel safe being around the families of the boys who murdered her son.

"We were living not far from the murderers, and right by the intended victim," she said. 

"I needed to move to protect myself and my daughter. I didn't feel safe any more, with people knowing where I lived."

Ronan was walking back to his house in Mount Road Lanesfield after visiting a friend when he was attacked by Prabjeet Veadhesa and Sukhman Shergill, who were also 16 at the time of the attack. On the morning before the attack, Veadhesa had collected a ninja sword set and a large machete from the post office, having ordered them online. They mistook Ronan for the friend he had visited, and Veadhesa stabbed him through the heart. 

Mrs Kanda said she was pleased with the measures announced by the Government yesterday (Wednesday), which will require online retailers to report any bulk or suspicious-looking purchases of knives, and impose stiffer sentences for selling knives to under-18s.

But Mrs Kanda said there was still much more that needed to be done. 

"I'm grateful, the Government have kept their word, they have shown that actions are louder than words," she said. "It is only the beginning, Ronan's Law will be much wider than this, and will include the banning of Ninja swords. There is still much more to do, but it is a start."

She said a ban on the sale of so-called 'ninja swords' would be a crucial part of the legislation, and she also wanted to see stricter licensing of retailers selling knives.

"I would also like post offices to put measures in place to protect the wider public."

Since Ronan's death, Mrs Kanda has been visiting schools where she tells youngsters about the dangers of knife crime. She said that although she no longer lived in Wolverhampton, she wanted to continue this work in the city. But she said she also wanted to broaden the scope of her work, and hoped to set up a charity in Ronan's memory. 

She said: "I would like to set up a Ronan's charity, I need to do something different to help protect the public from knife crime. I have got an idea of what I would like to do, but it's not set in stone yet."

Mrs Kanda said she struggled to understand the mentality of anyone who would carry a knife. 

"I don't understand how they would have it in their hearts to do what they are doing," she said. 

"If they say it's for protection, I can't accept that. "My son was murdered, but I don't carry a knife. People are making the wrong choices."

Mrs Kanda said schools, police and local authorities all needed to do more. 

"The police need to do more to support young people when they are found carrying knives, they need to protect the public and put them on the right path," she said. "They need to know that if they carry knives, they may end up either being murdered or becoming murderers."

She said schools were also too quick to exclude pupils rather than tackle their behaviour. 

"We have got to find a way for schools to accommodate them, rather than just letting them go and become involved in a life of crime," she said.