Securing Justice

"I stand here not just as a mother but as a broken soul whose life changed forever the day my child's life was taken from me by another child."

"I ask myself what has happened to those two boys that has resulted in that terrible act of violence, and I cannot imagine how can they be so angry."

"What they did was horrific and I do not know what has led them to do this, and maybe I will never."

"At least my son is at peace, and those two kids are going to have a really tough time." 

"To the young people who carry knives, I beg you to stop before you raise that blade."

"Don't let a moment of anger steal your future. Don't let the streets raise you in a way your mother never would. There is no power in death, only loss."

Marie Bokassa, mother of murder victim, Kelyan Bokassa

 

"[The teenager looked around and out of the windows before taking his seat] giving every impression that he was concerned for his safety."

"Kelyan Bokassa had no time to reach for his own knife, which remained in his trousers, and instead tried in vain to protect himself with his school bag."

"Since Kelyan Bokassa was seated on the back seat, he was cornered, unable to escape as the defendants repeatedly thrust their knives towards him, smiling as they did so." 

"There were several other passengers on the top deck who fled in panic when they realized what was happening. They describe hearing intense screaming from the back of the bus and the victim shouting, 'Help. Help. I've been stabbed'."

Prosecutor Deanna Heer KC 

Ms Bokassa told the court her son had loved food, cooking and football, and brought her flowers on her birthday  Photo: Family handout

 

On January7, 2025, a 14-year-old aspiring rapper seated himself on the top deck of a London bus on his way to an appointment. Two minutes after Kelyan Bokassa boarded that bus, another two boys aged 16 and 15, who appeared to know that Kelyan would be on the bus, got on as well. They made their way over to where Kelyan  was seated. Kelyan had stuck a small kitchen knife under his belt for whatever reason. The two boys who confronted him on the top of the double-decker bus had boarded it with machetes concealed under their clothing.

 

As the prosecution described it: The pair walked towards Kelyan "with purpose" and without speaking a word to their victim, thrust their machetes at him 27 times while smiling. The attack lasted 14 seconds. The briefest of intervals in the lives of three boys, leaving one dead and the surviving two hunted by police. Kelyan was buried, his 15th birthday celebrated by his mother at the cemetery where he was buried. The  two boys were found and charged, to await their day in court.

 

When Kelyan was lethally assaulted, CCTV showed him stumbling through the aisle while other passengers, shocked and transfixed around him watched him bleeding and stumbling along, heading for the stairs. Another passenger moved to assist him. And Kelyan was overheard to have said:  “Take me to my mum’s. I want my mum,” before he collapsed, bleeding heavily from a wound to the leg. When the bus stopped the other two boys fled the bus.

A passing police car was flagged down by members of the public, and officers entering the bus found Kelyan had collapsed, his body limp. Attempts to save him failed and the boy died at the scene. The two boys with their machetes had slashed him no fewer than 27 times. At the time they stood trial, pleading guilty, which would have reduced the penalty they might expect at judgement, they were both 16, their identities shielded from the public under British law, as under-aged defendants. 

Metropolitan Police   The attack was captured on CCTV cameras

 

Judge Mark Lucraft KC told the court at the Old Bailey: "For any parent to lose a child is a tragedy. No sentence of a court can truly reflect the loss of a young life." When he sentenced the two teens to life in prison he explained that one boy was a "victim of child criminal exploitation who had faced "a history of trauma". The second boy, he went on, was also exploited by gangs from the age of 12, experiencing "undiagnosed developmental needs." 

 

"Life in prison" for these two cold-blooded young murderers will be reflected by a minimum term of 15 years. In all likelihood, both will serve considerably less time incarcerated, given the trend to exceptionalism when sentencing those committing serious crimes in society, including murder in the first degree, taking into account their 'deprived' past experiences with the focus on social justice for the malefactors, leaving the public aghast at the consequences of sympathetic justice for malefactors while their victims remain afterthoughts. 

"This case has been deeply troubling for all involved and our thoughts remain with Kelyan’s family and loved ones."

"The harsh reality in London is that violence disproportionately affects young black men and boys. The fact we’re seeing so many teenagers like Kelyan die should be at the forefront of the minds of every politician, every policy maker and everyone who wants better for children growing up in London. Without this collective effort, we won’t be able to tackle knife crime in its entirety."

"Finally, I would like to recognize the members of the public that comforted Kelyan in his final moments and the witnesses who entrusted my investigation team with their testimonies. It was your bravery that helped us secure justice. Thank you." 

Detective Chief Inspector Sarah Lee, Metropolitan London Police 

 

"My child had a name, it was Kelyan, a future, a heartbeat full of hope. That life was not theirs to take."

"That moment of violence may have lasted seconds, but the consequences are eternal. They didn’t just take a life; they shattered an entire world."

"They broke a family, they buried a future, and they left me, a mother dead inside with wounds no justice can ever heal."

Marie Bokassa 

Kelyan and Marie Bokassa, Still from video