'One stab wound took my brother away from me'

Family members of a man who was stabbed and killed outside a night club during a night out are visiting schools around the South West to highlight the impact of knife crime.

Michael Riddiough-Allen, 32, was murdered after he tried to break-up a fight outside Eclipse nightclub in Bodmin in April 2023.

His sister Becky Dustan, 36, recently visited Wadebridge School to speak to students.

“It is our young people saying 'no to knives' that is going to make the biggest difference in the future” she said.

There was no shuffling or muttering, and no wavering of concentration as Mrs Dustan told the story of a Saturday night out that went wrong.

“My brother received one stab wound to the stomach," she told the group of Year 10 students.

"It hit two arteries in the stomach, and he bled out internally within three minutes of receiving that wound."

There was an audible sadness in her voice as she continued.

"One stab wound. He was big, bigger than me. One stab wound and that took my person, my brother, away from me."

Mrs Dustan told the children, aged between 14 and 15, about the man who "chose to carry a knife that night".

Jake Hill, who was 24 at the time of the stabbing, was sentenced to a minimum of 28 years in jail after being found guilty of murder.

"He will not be released until he is 53 at the earliest, his son will be 29. He will have missed out on the entirety of his son's childhood because of his choice that night," she said.

She also told the students about the compassion that she feels for Jake Hill’s family, who she described as "kind, caring and lovely people".

Jenny, 14, commented on how closely she and her classmates had been listening.

"There's normally a bit of chatter in class, but everyone really clicked in to what she was saying and...her emotions," she said.

Connie, 14, said Mrs Dustan came across "really well".

"She presented it in a powerful way and showed us that knife crime does happen."

Some of the students were visibly moved by what they heard, and their Relationship, Sex, and Health Education teacher, Helen Pearson, said she found it emotional, having listened to the talk a number of times as it was delivered to different classes.

"The thing that brought a tear to my eye was the one student going up to Becky afterwards and saying 'can I give you a hug?' That empathy really choked me," she said.

"Knife crime certainly isn't a concern for us at this school, but we want our children to be aware of the issues, we want them to be aware of the consequences," Ms Pearson added.

Mrs Dustan said the feedback from students gave her hope that what she was doing was worthwhile.