Sussex's knife epidemic laid bare

The county is among those with the biggest rise in the number of people found with weapons.

Sussex had a 40 per cent jump between June 2022 and June this year, the sixth highest  in England and Wales.

It was behind only Humberside, Cumbria, Staffordshire, Cheshire and London, whose increases ranged between 42 per cent and 90 per cent.

Sussex was fifth highest in terms of the number of possession of weapons offences, with 2,247 in that timeframe.

The shocking figures come after the fatal stabbings this year of teenagers Charlie Cosser and Mustafa Momand, who were both 17.

Charlie was stabbed at a party in the village of Warnham near Horsham on July 23. Mustafa was stabbed in Queen's Road, Brighton, in broad daylight at around 5pm on October 5.

Charlie Cosser died in July this year after being stabbed at a party near Horsham (Image: Sussex Police)

“Knife crime is one of the most devastating crimes of all, you see young lives lost and wrecked,” said Labour shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper.

“Parents say their children’s future has been taken away. They want to see action to help other families and children.

“There has been a 70 per cent increase in knife crime since 2015, most recently the steepest increases have been in smaller cities, towns and suburbs.

“So you are seeing those challenges across the country. We want to see much stronger restrictions on knife sales including online knife sales. There are online loopholes for getting dangerous weapons which are not being closed.”

An offensive weapon is defined as anything made or adapted to cause injury, or intended to be used as a weapon.

Sussex Police said a change in recording standards for possession of weapons offences at Gatwick Airport accounted for the majority of this increase.

A knife at the scene of a stabbing in Worthing in February this year (Image: Sussex News and Pictures)

A spokesman said: “We are aware of the new figures relating to possession of weapons. Sussex Police is working to tackle knife crime and has conducted campaigns including Operation Valley, Operation Sceptre and Operation Safety.

“These campaigns including carrying out proactive patrols and using equipment such as knife arches to both deter and detect weapons offences.

“We also work with partner agencies including schools, local authorities and community groups to engage with young people and the communities impacted.”

The recent tragic deaths in Sussex prompted The Argus’s Cut Knife Crime campaign which called for increased use of knife amnesty bins, educating young people about knife crime and having more "bleed control kits" in businesses. These provide bystanders with items including special dressings and a chest seal to help to stop life-threatening bleeding until paramedics arrive.

Mustafa Momand who was fatally stabbed in Queens Road, Brighton, in October (Image: Family handout)

We have spoken with Sussex Police, MPs, charities and the families of those killed in knife attacks about the devastating impact the crime has.

Knife crime charity The Ben Kinsella Trust urged parents to check their Amazon deliveries due to weapons such as zombie knives being easily available online.

Labour said it wants to spend £100 million on youth hubs, youth workers and mental health workers across the country to help stop young people getting drawn into crime.

Yvette Cooper said this would be similar to its Sure Start programme under the last Labour administration which helped children and families with early education and childcare.

More than 1,400 Sure Start centres have closed in England since the Conservatives came into power in 2010.