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A loyal, vulnerable boy betrayed. They groomed him, they lured him, they stabbed him. A murder planned online, their posts, BECAME PROOF.

Olly Stephens was just 13 years old, a boy who loved doing wheelies, baking, cooking, making people laugh, and standing up for others. He was a son, a brother, a friend.

But his loyalty and vulnerability were exploited. Groomed by older boys who glamorised gang culture, and lured to a park by a girl he once called a friend, Olly was ambushed only yards from his home. Two stabs from a teenager’s knife ended his life and triggered a media surge to uncover the truth.

Social media played a devastating role, used to plan the murder and brag about weapons, but it also became the very evidence that convicted them.

In this episode, Olly’s mum, Amanda, shares who her son truly was, the painful reality of grooming and knife crime, and the grief of losing a child to violence. She also speaks about the court case that followed, and her determination to raise awareness so no other family has to endure the same loss.

Help following the topics raised today, can be found at the below websites, all of whom have helped Amanda.

https://benkinsella.org.uk/

https://no5.org.uk/

https://parentingspecialchildren.co.uk/

https://www.n3wangle.com/

https://startingpoint.org.uk/contact/