The sister of a teenager fatally stabbed near her home said she was “extremely disappointed” to learn that banned zombie knives are still available to buy online.

BBC News was able to purchase four of the knives from retailers with UK websites, despite a ban introduced in England and Wales in September.

Nikita Kanda’s brother Ronan, 16, was murdered in a case of mistaken identity in Wolverhampton in June 2022 and the family is campaigning against the sale of knives online.

She said “something would have gone wrong” if such weapons whose sole purpose was to cause harm could still be purchased so easily.

Ms. Kanda and her mother were I am spearheading a campaign against knife crime and I want the sale of ninja swords to be banned – the weapon that was used to kill Ronan after his killers purchased it and a machete online.

They collected the items just hours before the attack, at a local post office.

The ban on the sword is being considered by the government in a new consultation published on Wednesdaywhich would also see senior social media executives who fail to remove illegal content about knife crime face a fine.

“I don’t understand how they (zombie-style knives) can be bought if they are banned,” Ms Kanda said.

“It’s extremely disappointing. They’re not supposed to be less available, we don’t want any availability at all.

“These weapons have no other purpose than to kill or injure someone.”

BBC News placed orders through the UK websites of four online retailers, three of which sold the knives.

Zombie-style knives are officially defined as a blade more than eight inches (20.32 cm) in length with a sharp point and a single cutting edge, plus a serrated edge, more than one hole in the blade, spikes or more than two edges. points.

The Offensive Weapons Act, passed on September 24, makes it an offense punishable by imprisonment to possess, manufacture, transport or sell a wide range of “statement” knives favored by criminal gangs.

Nikita Kanda said online knife sales clearly needed further scrutiny if they could still be bought and hoped the government would take action.

The Home Office said it was carrying out a “rapid review” into the sale of knives online.

Ms Kanda and her mother said that while they supported the ban, they believed compulsory education in schools and early intervention for minor offenses were also key to stopping knife attacks.

THURSDAY they visited Ronan’s old primary school to raise awareness among pupils of the dangers of getting involved in knife crime.

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