Police in Peterborough say 'dangerous' zombie knife ban will make streets safer
As of Monday 26th August, possession of these weapons will be illegal
Officers in Peterborough tell us that a new ban on zombie knives, which have the 'sole purpose of causing harm', will make our streets safer.
A previous loophole in the law, meant that the blades were not illegal unless they contained imagery which depicts violence.
Zombie knives tent to be longer, often up to 8 inches, with jagged edges and holes in order to cause maximum damage to people or property.
Inspector Karl Secker, the Tactical Lead for Knife Crime in Peterborough, said, "These zombie knives have been almost given a status by people who will be using them in crime.
"Often by people that may be involved in drugs or serious violence."
Inspector Secker explained that many of those carrying zombie knives are young people, with the aim of causing harm. He said, "They don't belong in our streets.
"We don't want things on the streets that are going to harm others, so therefore they need to be banned."
Knife crime offences have decreased in Peterborough, when comparing the previous 12 month against the year before.
A total of 119 cases of possession of a bladed weapon were recorded between Aug 2023 - July 2024.
This compares to 125 over the same period in the year prior, equating to a decrease of 5%.
Inspector Karl Secker told us that Cambridgeshire Constabulary are leading the way in tackling knife crime. He said, "We've gone from being kind of mid table in terms of knife crime instance per 100,000 population, down to bottom 5 or 10 in the country.
W"e're doing pretty well and we've been recognised nationally, other police forces coming to us to ask us about this about what we're doing."