Calls for tougher knife laws after boy, 15, killed

The stabbing to death of a 15-year-old boy in London has prompted renewed calls for tougher sentences for knife crime.

Adam Regis became the latest in a spate of teenage murder victims after he was found bleeding to death in a street in east London after a Saturday night out at the cinema with friends.

Police are trying to track down two youths wearing hooded tops who were seen running from the murder scene in Plaistow.

Adam's family,believed to include the former Olympic athlete John Regis, were said to be "devastated" by his murder. He had been stabbed in the leg and suffered other undisclosed injuries.

His murder follows a spate of teenage killings, including the stabbing to death of 16-year-old Kodjo Yenga, who was attacked while walking with his girlfriend in Hammersmith, west London, five days ago.

There is growing pressure on John Reid, the Home Secretary, to bring in tougher sentences for knife crime. He is considering measures to combat the rise in gang-related shootings.

Sir Menzies Campbell, leader of the Liberal Democrats, called for a five-year mandatory sentence for carrying a knife - the same as with a gun. He said: "The Labour Government refuses to accept that carrying a knife can be as dangerous as a gun. The sentence for carrying a knife in a public place should be made the same as that for carrying a gun. We also urgently need to challenge the culture that makes it acceptable to carry knives."

Labour has introduced new measures to raise the maximum sentence for carrying a knife in a public place from two to four years.

In the latest knife killing, Adam was black, tall for his age and was wearing white Nike trainers, was seen falling to the ground at the junction of Boundary Road and Kingsland Road in Plaistow on Saturday evening. It happened in a quiet residential area not far from West Ham United's football ground in Upton Park.

He was bleeding from a leg wound, and taken to nearby Newham General Hospital where he died 90 minutes later. The senior investigating detective said there was "absolutely nothing to indicate it was a gang-related act ".

Det Ch Insp Ian Stevenson, of the Metropolitan Police, said his thoughts were with the family on Mother's Day."It must be absolutely dreadful for the family, I can't imagine what they are going through," he said.

Mr Stevenson said at 9.26pm two members of the public were walking in Boundary Road, when they heard some shouting and raised voices, which sounded like three people. They saw the victim, a 15-year-old boy, emerge from Kingsland Road and collapse. They found he was bleeding from a stab wound to his leg, and he also had other injuries."

He added: "Two youths were seen running near to where the victim was found and I urgently need them to come forward as they may have vital information.

"[Adam]He had been to the Showcase cinema in Beckton with some friends earlier in the evening and may have travelled to Boundary Road by bus."

He said bus numbers 104 and 376 stopped near where the teenager was found and detectives would be examining CCTV images from the buses. The officer said it was possible the two hooded black youths had also been on a bus.

Sandra Wynands, 59, yesterday told how she found Adam dying in the street and stayed with him until the emergency services arrived. Mrs Wynands thought the boy had suffered a fit and wept when she heard on the radio what had happened.

The mother of two was walking along Boundary Road when she saw the boy slumped on the floor in a pool of blood. "There were two other black boys there, one on a mobile phone - they looked like they were in shock," she said. "I told them to call the emergency services, and I did too and we all stayed with him until they arrived, which was very, very shortly afterwards.

"At one point, a man came along and was tickling the boy's ear, saying, 'Stay alive', but he wasn't conscious.

"When I heard the news this morning, I just sat and cried. "How must his mum be feeling on Mother's Day?"

Death toll

* 3 February: James Andre Smartt-Ford, 16, died after being shot at an ice rink in Streatham, south London.

* 6 February: 15-year-old Michael Dosunmu, thought to be victim of mistaken identity, was shot at his Peckham home.

* 14 February: Billy Cox, 15, was shot dead at home in Clapham .

* 5 March: A 16-year-old boy was stabbed in broad day light on a street in Birminghamclose to Matthew Boulton College. He died in hospital two days later.

* 14 March: Kodjo Yenga, 16, was stabbed to death in Hammersmith Grove, west London.