Cambridge mum highlights the destructive reality of knife crime

A Cambridge mum whose son was fatally stabbed wants to highlight the destructive reality of knife crime.

The mum, who wishes to remain anonymous, has opened up about the devastating moment she discovered her son had been killed by two men on a Cambridge street.

Father-of-one Joshua Barr was stabbed multiple times and found collapsed in Ferrars Way just after 5am on 10 March.

He had called an ambulance and told call handlers he had been stabbed and two people had attacked him but paramedics were unable to save him and he died at 6.10am.

At Peterborough Crown Court last week (1 November) 20-year-old Tyler Marshall was sentenced to 16 years in prison and 23-year-old Cameron Stokes was sentenced to 22 years in prison after a jury found them guilty of murder during a four week trial last month.

Joshua’s mum recalls the day with great pain.

She said: “When I woke that morning, Mother’s Day, I was wondering why I hadn’t heard from my boy. It was unusual for Joshua not to text or call me on this day.

“When police officers arrived a short while later and explained he had passed away and that a murder investigation had been started, I then knew of course, he wasn’t going to contact me. Not this Mother’s Day or any other.

“I was overwhelmed with panic, distress and was confused at the news. I couldn’t believe it. My reality was shattered.

“I later learned that Joshua died on a pavement, and I was not there to comfort him. He must have been so scared and afraid, lying there in pain.

“I’ve visited the place where he was killed. I felt such loss for him bleeding out there with no dignity. I think about how people walk over this pavement every day.

“There is nothing Joshua would have ever done to justify being stabbed so many times. I wake at night not being able to breathe. I am haunted with saturated thoughts of my sons’ final moments.

“My son has gone, no more hopes and dreams, no more Father or Mother’s day. No more Christmas or birthday celebrations. His brutal murder has destroyed so many lives.

“Where I once saw the world in colour, I now only see it in black and white.

“This is the reality of knife crime and carrying a knife. It’s not a game. It’s real. Joshua didn’t die, he was murdered with a knife.”

Chief Inspector Oliver Warsop said: “The devastating effects of knife crime and serious violence on victims, their families and the wider communities cannot be underestimated. Cambridgeshire Constabulary will always seek to pursue those who pose a risk to others through the use of knives.

“Though we do not underestimate the challenges of doing so, we also remain committed to working with partners to identify where we can put in place work to reduce the number of people carrying knives and prevent people coming to harm.”

More information about knife crime can be found on our website.