The 17-year-old who cannot be named for legal reasons pleaded guilty to both offences on 24th May 2021 at Southampton Youth Court.

The court heard that at around 4.30pm on Friday, 5 March, a 30-year-old man was walking home after work when he passed two boys sat at a bus stop in Onslow Road. As the man walked past the boys, they started swearing at him so he stopped and challenged them before walking on to Kingsbury Road.

The two boys followed the man into Kingsbury Road where an altercation took place, during which, the man received a stab wound to the right hand side of his chest. The two boys then walked off.

Members of the public who witnessed the incident tended to the man in the street until paramedics arrived and took him to Southampton General Hospital for emergency treatment.

Appearing at Southampton Crown Court on Friday (28th January 2022), the 17-year-old was sentenced to three and a half years in jail for causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

A second teenage boy, also aged 17, pleaded guilty to assault by beating at a previous hearing. He appeared at Southampton Youth Court on 17 May 2021 for sentence and was given a six month referral order.

Detective Constable Adrian Lugg from the Western Investigation Team said “This senseless act of violence could have easily resulted in far worse consequences for both the victim and those involved.

“Fortunately, following surgery, the victim survived the attack and has recovered well, however he will be left with permanent scarring.

“The devastation caused by serious violence and knives is far reaching, it not only has a huge impact on those involved but also friends, families and the wider community.

“Tackling knife crime in our city and keeping people safe is an absolute priority for us and I hope that today’s sentence sends out a clear message that we will do everything in our power to take them and the offenders that carry them off the streets. No good ever comes from carrying knives.”

Chris Brown from Southampton’s Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) said “This incident shows the stupidity of carrying knives – a minor dispute escalated because someone decided to carry a knife. This has led to a man suffering pain, injury and trauma, and the offender being sentenced to imprisonment. Both will live with the effects of this incident for years to come.

“We need to stop the carrying of knives in this City – that includes work from the Police and the Safety City Partnership, but also all of us making sure that our loved ones, friends and children are kept safe by reinforcing the message not to carry knives.”

We continue to urge communities to keep reporting intelligence around knife crime so that together we can continue to tackle this threat in society.

To do this people can call us on 101 or report online at https://orlo.uk/SJGYZ