Widow pleads with youths to stop carrying knives after husband stabbed to death outside Asda supermarket

In a powerful video interview, a devastated widow speaks for the first time since losing her "best friend and other half". Ian Kirwan, 53, was knifed in the heart in Redditch, Worcs, after confronting a gang of youths for messing about in a toilet.

Watch Grief - A documentary about knife crime in the Black Country on Shots! TV.

Fighting back tears, Lyndsey, 44, says: “He was confronted by a group of lads who were messing about. They approached him and a fight ensued and he was stabbed in the chest and died on the floor of Asda.” Lyndsey reveals the pain and heartache she has felt over the past two years, adding: “Half of me died that day.”

A 14-year-old boy admitted stabbing the Jaguar Land Rover worker in the chest on March 5, 2022. He has since turned 16 and is serving a life sentence. Three other youths - two aged 14 and one aged 16 - were previously cleared of murder and manslaughter but found guilty of violent disorder. A fifth boy, aged 16, was acquitted of murder, manslaughter and violent disorder.

Lyndsey has now urged young people to stop carrying knives, and for parents to watch out for any signs that their child may be carrying a knife. “If no one is carrying a knife, then everyone is safe,” she says. “I would urge parents to speak to their children, look for changes in their behaviour and talk to them about the repercussions of carrying a weapon.”