Pooja Kanda, whose son Ronan was murdered in 2022, has called on anyone who still owns a ninja sword to ‘do the right thing’ and surrender it as a ban comes into force
Since her 16-year-old son Ronan was murdered with a ninja sword, Pooja Kanda has been on a mission to make the streets safer.
The heartbroken mother has a powerful message to those who still have the deadly weapons, which today become illegal to possess. “Do the right thing – save yourself, your family and your future,” she said.
Pooja knows full well the misery such swords – which for years have been readily available online with minimal checks – can cause. Schoolboy Ronan was stabbed through the heart as he walked home in June 2022 in a tragic case of mistaken identity. Her voice cracking, Pooja reflected on the way her life changed that day – and her desperate need to stop others going through the same thing.
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Ronan’s teenage killers had bought the 20-inch blade online, and murderer Prabjeet Veadhesa collected it along with a machete on the morning of the attack. Pooja only learned how easy it was to buy these weapons at the trial of Veadhesa and Sukhman Shergill, who were both found guilty of murder.
Speaking at her home in Wolverhampton she said: “When I left that courtroom I just didn’t know how it was happening. It was a shock to my whole system, I was in pain.
“And my son, when you see the reality of what happened to Ronan, that is beyond words. There was no chance that he would have survived that.”
During the harrowing weeks of evidence, it emerged that Veadhesa – who was only 16 when he murdered Ronan – had amassed an array of weapons that he purchased online. A 16-year-old was able to buy 25 of those weapons, it was beyond words,” Pooja said softly.
“I had to do something at that point. I lost the most beautiful, loving, caring, intelligent human being who would have made a positive difference on this earth.”
Determined that Ronan’s death would make a difference, Pooja set about campaigning for the law to change and outlaw weapons like the one that killed her son. She said: “There is no reason for these weapons. This is not a kitchen knife, there is no sense of purpose.
“These large knives do not serve any purpose. And when they get into the wrong hands they are used for what happened to Ronan, for a murder to harm somebody else.”
Ronan was walking home after buying a a PlayStation controller from a friend when he was set upon. His killers had mistaken him for another teenager, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard the following year.
Pooja said: “The weapon went through his heart. It was small and sharp and long, and what Ronan went through in that moment he should not have gone through. This type of weapon should have been banned years ago.
“They should have been monitoring online activity of these types of weapons years ago. They should have been doing that and my son would have been here today.”
Pooja, who was awarded an OBE in the King’s birthday honours list in June, branded internet weapon vendors “heartless”. “All they care about is their money,” she said.
“And the bloodshed, what’s happening behind it, they do not care about it.” Her tireless work in Ronan’s memory has already made a huge difference in tackling the horrendous online loopholes.
Today’s ban is a landmark, but it’s not the end. Legislation working its way through Parliament will bring in mandatory two-step age checks for anyone buying blades.
Tougher sentences for those who sell knives to under-16s will be brought in what the Government has called Ronan’s Law. There will also be a new criminal offence of possessing an offensive weapon with intent for violence – carrying a jail term of up to four years in prison.
The bereaved mum said today is a “strong step forward” – but more needs to be done to keep kids safe. She said: “This is very important legislation that will be protecting youths. Children will be able to walk home not much more safely.
“I’m not saying this is the end. I’m saying this is a one strong step forward, but there are many more to take.” She said now is the time for families to stand up and make the streets safer.
Her next step, she revealed, will be to demand a licensing system for online and face-to-face sales of sharp blades. “We need the community to come forward and, come forward, speak to us, support us,” she said.
“Right now I could do with more support from the public and I want mums and dads and the siblings, everyone to come forward now. These kind of people (knife sellers) must be held accountable.”
She praised Home Secretary Yvette Cooper for finally tightening the law around online knife sales. “I believe that the government is walking on the right path,” Pooja said. “They’re doing much more than the previous governments do, and they are definitely committed to halving knife crime.”
Since June more than 1,000 ninja swords have been handed in at amnesty bins and police stations ahead of the ban. This will make it illegal to possess, manufacture, import or sell these deadly weapons.
From now on anyone caught in possession of a ninja sword in a private place could be jailed for six months. This will go up to two years when the Crime and Policing Bill becomes law.
And there is already a penalty of up to four years in prison for carrying any weapon in public. Writing for The Mirror, Policing Minister Dame Diana Johnson said ninja swords are “a deadly weapon bought online with no legitimate purpose beyond causing harm”.
She praised Pooja for her relentless campaigning since Ronan’s death, writing: “Ronan’s memory deserves nothing less than our unwavering commitment to create communities where every child can walk home safely.”
The ban on ninja swords has been welcomed by police chiefs. Simon Foster and Matthew Barber, who lead on serious violence at the Association for Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC) said it will make a “significant difference” in the availability of these deadly weapons.
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