'Something wrong if zombie knives sold online'

The sister of a teenager fatally stabbed near his home has said she is "extremely disappointed" to learn banned zombie knives are still available to buy online.

BBC News was able to purchase four of the knives from retailers with UK websites, despite a ban being introduced in England and Wales in September.

Nikita Kanda's brother Ronan, 16, was murdered in a case of mistaken identity in Wolverhampton in June 2022 and the family have been campaigning against online sales of knives.

She said "something had gone wrong" if such weapons whose only purpose was to cause harm could still be purchased that easily.

Ms Kanda and her mother have been spearheading a knife crime campaign and want a ban on the sale of ninja swords - the weapon that was used to kill Ronan after his killers bought it and a machete online.

They picked the items up just hours before the attack, from a local post office.

The sword ban is being considered by the government in a new consultation that was published on Wednesday, which would also see senior social media executives who fail to remove illegal knife crime content face a fine.

"I don't understand how they [zombie-style knives] can be bought if they are banned," Ms Kanda said.

"It's extremely disappointing. They're not meant to be less available, we want no availability at all.

"These weapons have no other purpose than to kill or cause harm to someone."

BBC News placed orders via the UK websites of four online retailers with three selling the knives.

Zombie-style knives are officially defined as a blade over eight inches (20.32cm) in length with a sharp point and a plain cutting edge, plus either a serrated edge, more than one hole in the blade, spikes, or more than two sharp points.

The Offensive Weapons Act brought in on 24 September made it an imprisonable offence to own, make, transport or sell a wide range of "statement" knives favoured by criminal gangs.

Nikita Kanda said online sales of knives clearly needed much more scrutiny if they could still be purchased and hoped the government would act.

The Home Office said it was carrying out a "rapid review" into the sale of knives online.

Ms Kanda and her mother have said while they support the ban, they believed compulsory education in schools and earlier intervention for minor crimes was also vital to stop stabbings.

On Thursday they visited Ronan's former primary school to address pupils about the dangers of getting involved in knife crime.

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