Stabbing victim tells personal journey: I’m so glad I was knifed

A young Londoner today said he was “glad” he was stabbed as it had given him the opportunity to warn others of the dangers of knife crime.

Amani Simpson was stabbed seven times when he intervened in a friend’s dispute over stolen goods that quickly escalated out of control and saw him confronted by a 20-strong gang.

Now a motivational speaker and community worker, he is aiming to crowdfund £15,000 to support making a short film telling his story as he seeks to divert teenagers away from crime.

“I’m so glad I got stabbed,” Mr Simpson, 28, from Enfield, said. “It has been such a big blessing in disguise to me. It’s allowed me to go on a personal journey of development I wouldn’t have otherwise.”

The attack happened in July 2011 in Enfield. “I had the choice to go home or stay and get involved,” the former Enfield Grammar School pupil said of the incident. “I decided to do the latter. I probably got stabbed and slashed 20 to 30 times but I was wearing a Puffa jacket and only seven got through. When I saw the jacket, it was ripped to shreds.”

He suffered wounds to the head, leg and arms. He was taken by ambulance to the Royal London hospital in Whitechapel, but was able to be discharged the following day.

“Everywhere I got stabbed I could have died,” he said. “Me being here is a miracle.” He says he has no idea who carried out the attack.

He said: “I had a conversation with myself, ‘How have I got here?’ Getting kicked out of school, arguing with my parents. I made a pact with God: if you give me another chance, I will do something more positive.”

The film dramatises Mr Simpson’s journey to hospital in the ambulance. He will be played by actor Jovian Wade, and the film will also feature former Met police superintendent Leroy Logan, Dr Gayle Hann, a consultant paediatrician at North Middlesex hospital, and actor Duayne Boa. Filming is due to start next week in north London.

The film will be used in the anti-knife crime presentations Mr Simpson gives in schools. Only after each screening will he reveal to his audience that the story is his own. “They won’t know it’s me,” he said.

He believes key factors in the surge in knife crime are poverty and a lack of funding for community institutions.

• Gofundme.com/amanis-story-short-film