Knife Crime: What Happened to Our Boys?

Kelyan Bokassa was murdered on a bus in broad daylight in Woolwich in south east London in January 2025. He was 14 years old. A few weeks earlier, his friend, 15-year-old Daejaun Campbell, was also murdered in a knife attack on a nearby street. Both boys were being exploited by criminal gangs. Their mothers tell Panorama they knew their sons were in danger, and that they desperately tried to get help. But they say the authorities failed them. The local council says it's working hard to tackle knife crime, and that it is committed to learning from what happened.

So how did Kelyan and Daejaun slip through the cracks of a system which is meant to keep children safe? Reporter Frankie McCamley traces the lives of two lost boys and follows the mothers left behind, who now want answers.