West Midlands police have named the victim of a stabbing
A 15-year-old boy has died following a stabbing in Wolverhampton last night, West Midlands Police said.
Police officers were called to Merry Hill at 11pm on May 29 after reports of an incident involving a group of youths.
The teenager, identified as Keelan Wilson, was taken to hospital after suffering serious injuries and died a short time later.
Authorities have launched a murder investigation and are currently reviewing CCTV footage.
Chief Superintendent of West Midlands Police Jayne Meir said: “We need to understand why this happened so it doesn’t happen to anybody else.”
“This was an absolutely unnecessary and tragic incident where a 15-year-old boy has lost his life. We need to stand up together as a community and stop this from happening.
“Our young people are increasingly feeling the need to carry weapons. The natural consequence of carrying weapons is that people get injured and on this occasion, someone lost their life. He [Keelan] was at the start of his life and it’s ended absolutely prematurely and we need to stop it happening to other young people in our city.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqYOlq9utZU
Specialist forensic examiners have been scouring at the scene all day with work expected to carry on into the evening.
Detectives from the force’s homicide unit have spoken to people living in the area and a mobile police station has been set up in the road should anyone want to talk to officers about what happened.
Keelan Wilson (pictured) died in #Wolverhampton last night. His death was unnecessary and tragic. He was just 15-years-old. We need to stand together as a community and stop this from happening again. Read more: https://t.co/JajRoDkKbe pic.twitter.com/103JPkRsYU
— West Midlands Police (@WMPolice) May 30, 2018
The West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, David Jamieson, said: “For anyone to have their life taken in this way is truly heart breaking. For this to happen to someone so young is almost incomprehensible.
“The killing has devastated the victim’s family, friends and the wider West Midlands.
“I have every confidence the police are working around the clock to catch those responsible and will bring them to justice.
“This attack is another stark reminder that we must not tolerate the violent crimes that are plaguing communities up and down the country.
“To help reverse the rise in violent crime I am investing an extra £2 million to tackle the causes. The initiatives include mentoring schemes to help young people make the right life choices, employing mediators to defuse gang violence and supporting individuals to escape the cycle of crime.”
Anyone with information should call 101; quoting log 3060 of 29/5/18 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
