Shopkeeper in knife crime fight

Knife crime has become an issue in schools after some high profile deaths

An east London shopkeeper has cleared his shelves of lock knives to help cut youth crime and saves lives.

Nadeem Nasir, who owns Bits and Bobs in Barking Road, East Ham, asked police officers to take away his entire stock of 300 knives.

The father-of-four said: "If there are fewer knives on our streets, there is less chance a person will be killed or injured," he said.

Sixteen teenagers have died as a result of violent crime in London this year.

Decent and responsible

Mr Nasir, 45, said: "My wife and I took the decision to stop selling knives in our shop because we want to take a stand against knife crime and help save lives, particularly young people.

"We hope that by handing over these knives today we are assisting police by helping people feel safer and I urge other shopkeepers to do the same."

The knives will be disposed of safely by the Metropolitan Police.

Ch Insp Gary Brown said Mr Nasir had acted in a "very decent and responsible manner".

"There are potentially 300 less knives on the streets of Newham and this is an incredibly significant number in the fight against knife crime in this borough", he said.