Oxford mother whose son was stabbed to death calling for people to hand in knives
Today is the last day for people to hand zombie knives and machetes in to police without prosecution.
Last updated 23rd Sep 2024
A mother from Oxford whose son was stabbed to death outside his own home is calling for people to hand knives into the police, as today is the last day for people to dispose of so called zombie knives and machetes without prosecution.
From tomorrow (Tuesday, 24th September), it will be illegal to have one of these blades as they are added to the list of dangerous weapons banned from ownership, alongside Samurai swords, butterfly knives and push daggers.
‘Save a life’
Aaron Buron, was 29, when he stepped in to stop a fight outside his own home in Rose Hill between a man and his girlfriend in 2012.
The man, Hayden O'Callaghan, armed himself with a knife and went looking for Aaron before he stabbed he stabbed the 29 year old to death.
O'Callaghan, who was 18 at the time, pleaded guilty to manslaughter but was found guilty of murder by a jury and sentenced to life in prison.
Aaron’s mother, Eden Buron, 67, is today calling for people to hand in zombie knives and machetes to “dispose of it in the correct manner and save a life”.
Ms Buron told us the impact that knife crime has had on her family, she said: “Aaron left two young sons who are now obviously much older, and they haven’t recovered from the loss of their dad.
“They will never recover because every day when they go to bed and everyday when they wake up, they still haven’t got a dad there.”
Eden also told us the indescribable feeling of losing her eldest son, she said: “There’s a void there, there’s that empty space, that empty gap.
“It’s because you miss your loved ones from when they were with you, and it will never ever be erased.”
She added: “You know, this is a life that’s been taken away from their families.
“Then they have to go through all the hurt, resentment and anger. Everything boils up into one.”
Ms Buron said, “Why do you want to take a life?” and has this message:
‘The aim is to educate’
Since Aaron passed away over a decade ago, Eden has been campaigning against knife crime.
Alongside her partner, Stephen Blakemore, 67, they are currently setting up a charity supporting victims of knife crime and planning to help educate children about the dangers of carrying knives.
Mr Blakemore is a former police officer, he said: “The charity is in memory of Eden’s son, Aaron.
He added: “With the recent spate of knife crime on the rise in felt like it was time that we tried to do something about it.
“We did a Google search and there are no anti-knife crime groups in the Oxfordshire area, and we identified there’s a niche.
“The aim is to educate, getting into schools, colleges, youth groups and anyone that will listen”.