Former World Champion boxer Tony Bellew has admitted he is terrified of letting his own sons out amid “all-time high” knife crime.
Speaking to the Mirror, he said: “It’s unbearable speaking to the families of victims like Ava, I can’t bear to think about what they have been through. I have four young boys and I’m overprotective. I’m scared to let my 18-year-old son Corey go into Liverpool city centre.
“Politicians aren’t doing enough. The police are now so underfunded that they are struggling badly.”
Tony, head of sport at Weapons Down Gloves Up, said of the charity: “We are going to help these kids into full-time employment, show them there is more to life than committing crime. A lot of them have had rejection, being told they’re not good enough. But after three weeks in a boxing gym, having to dig deep to find themselves, they are happy to go in a classroom and learn.”
In a message to Rishi Sunak, he said: “Walk a week in their shoes, when you don’t know where the next pound is coming from, then tell me you do the best for them.”
He added: “The government and politicians aren’t doing enough. I think the police are now so undercut and underfunded that they are struggling badly, so I don’t necessarily blame them but it’s an absolute disgrace."
Referring to the growing knife crime culture among young adults , Tony said: “Knife crime is at an all time high, a knife is as relevant as a phone for some of these kids, the phone goes in one pocket, the knife goes in the other.”
