Son was 'wrenched' from mum after Lakeside Shopping Centre murder

The mum of a young man who was stabbed to death in an Essex shopping centre shared how hearing the news of her son's death was like having something "wrenched out" from inside her. Lauretta Ugwa warns of the “devastation” which knife crime causes and its far-reaching consequences for the families of victims – and the criminals.

She has bravely decided to speak out as part of a national week of action on knife crime, named Sceptre week, organised by Essex Police. Her son, 29-year-old Michael Ugwa, a dad of three, was in the Lakeside Shopping Centre food court at 4.30pm on April 28, 2022 when a chance meeting led to him being stabbed by Muhammad Khan.

Khan, of Illford, east London, and his accomplice Brandon Lutchmunsing, previously of Grafton Road, Dagenham, confronted Michael and his friends. As the confrontation escalated Khan lunged at Michael with a knife and stabbed him under his arm, through his ribs and puncturing his heart.

Read more: Mum says family has been 'shattered' by 'senseless' murder of dad-of-three

Read more: Chilling CCTV footage shows moments before dad is murdered in Lakeside Shopping Centre

Khan was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison with a minimum or 27 years. Lutchmunsing was convicted of manslaughter and affray and sentenced to 13 years. Khan was said to be in a "clearly aggressive mood" and had previously said he "felt like killing someone" that day.

Laurette recalled how someone showed her an image on SnapChat which showed her son Michael lying on the floor in the shopping centre before people rushed to his aid. She said: "It was like someone put their hands in my tummy, and something was wrenched out, like there was weight on it."

She continued: “Everybody in my family, in one way or the other, has been affected. Normally when I'm working, I don't pick up calls. But then Michael called me and he asked can you make soup? I'm going to come with my partner.

“And he goes: ‘You are the best mum ever!’. That was the last thing he said to me. When I got home, the police were there and that was when they said to me that my son was dead.”

She added: “When you carry a knife, the tendency to use it is there. You can decide to justify your carrying a knife by saying: ‘Oh, I want to use it to defend myself'. No. My son’s children will live without a father for the rest of their lives.

“Michael’s murder has affected everyone. Everyone has lost. This is killing families. This is devastating families. Young children are left without their fathers. This needs to stop. We are still feeling this amount of pain. This is what knife crime does.”

Detective chief inspector Ian Hughes, who leads our work to tackle knife crime in Essex, said: “The bravery of Lauretta to come forward and tell her story, to be so open about the devastating impact of knife crime is humbling.

“Her words, as a loving mum, say more than I ever could so my plea to people in Essex – and indeed around the country – today is to watch her video. To anyone who’s thinking of carrying a knife, listen to Lauretta’s message. To anyone who suspects their loved one may be carrying a knife or may be at risk of carrying a knife, please listen to her warning.

“To reiterate Lauretta’s words, knife crime is devastating. We’re working really hard to tackle knife crime, with specialist teams in place across the force and we’ll continue to do that work determinedly.”