IN SUPPORT: Stabbing victim, Vincent Uzomah, and Temporary Assistant Chief Constable Angela Williams, helped launch the ‘weapons surrender’ initiative earlier this week
IN SUPPORT: Stabbing victim, Vincent Uzomah, and Temporary Assistant Chief Constable Angela Williams, helped launch the ‘weapons surrender’ initiative earlier this week

Calls to ‘make society safer’ echoed by police

A Bradford teacher, who was stabbed in the stomach by a pupil last year, is backing a new West Yorkshire Police initiative giving people the chance to hand over guns and other weapons.

Vincent Uzomah was working as a teacher at Dixons Kings Academy in Bradford in June last year when he was stabbed by a teenage boy.

Now stepping up to support the latest police campaign, he urged members of the public to take advantage of the weapons amnesty before people get hurt.

He said: “Weapons are not toys, so please do not carry one. I nearly lost my life in the hands of a knife-carrying student in school, and my family was devastated.

“Our society is safer when you don’t carry one. Hand in any weapon in your possession today please.”

The weapons surrender, running from 20th January until the end of the month, involves police urging members of the public to hand in any weapons they hold – including knives and offensive weapons

The initiative aims to avoid weapons getting into the wrong hands and provide members of the community with a safe place to dispose of firearms, ammunition, knives and other weapons they have.

During the campaign those surrendering firearms, ammunition, knives and other offensive weapons will not face prosecution for simply possessing these weapons and they may wish to remain anonymous.

The initiative is being supported by the Save a Life, Surrender Your Knife campaign which aims to bring together anti-knife campaigners across the country to reduce the number of weapons on the streets and make communities safer.

Temporary Assistant Chief Constable Angela Williams said: “While we continue to maintain a low number of recorded crimes involving guns, knives and other weapons, we take it extremely seriously.

“We had a good response to a similar campaign in November 2014 when more than 150 knives and other weapons were handed in. The safe removal of these items from the streets ensures they cannot be used for criminal activity or worse still to hurt or kill someone.

“We would urge members of the public to hand in any weapons at their local police station. Failure to do so would be a serious matter and could lead to some very serious charges.”