Manchester Cathedral candlelit vigil to remember knife crime victims

A candlelit vigil will be held in Manchester Cathedral this evening (6pm), to remember those who have died as a result of increasing knife crime in Manchester. 

It will show support and solidarity to the families of those who have been taken, as a consequence of such violence.

Amidst the knife crime summit, which will see a number of community leaders speak regarding a problem that plagues the UK, including Greater Manchester, the family of Yousef Makki will launch a crowdfunding campaign in an attempt to reach a target of £100,000.00. 

It will fund the ‘Justice for Yousef’ campaign. 

Yousef Makki was 17 years old, when he was stabbed to death on March 1st, 2019 in the affluent, middle class area of Hale Barns, near Altrincham in Greater Manchester. 

It happened not far from the glitzy bars and restaurants of the picturesque, leafy village. 

Yousef stumbled on after he'd been stabbed, eventually collapsing under a tree.

Despite a local security guard coming to the rescue to try and help stem the bleeding, Yousef’s injuries proved to be fatal. 

Yousef was a regular straight A student and was on track to become a heart surgeon. Having grown up in the working class village of Burnage, Stockport, he was awarded a full bursary to the prestigious Manchester Grammar School aged 11.

Yousef was spoken of highly by the school’s Headteacher and teaching staff and known for supporting younger students with their homework tasks. Yousef Makki was a gentle giant.

At 6 foot 3 inches in height and with a bright future ahead of him, why would he carry a knife?

During the four week trial, it was alleged by the defence that the Yousef first pulled out a knife on the night of his death, following an argument with his friends.

However, during the criminal investigation that followed Yousef’s death, no knife was found containing Yousef’s DNA and his family maintain it would not be in his character to carry a weapon.

In court, ‘Boy A’ admitted lying to police and being in possession of the knife that dealt the fatal blows to Yousef, yet he could not recall in court the specifics of how he had ended up stabbing him to death. 

On multiple occasions, Yousef’s family requested the opportunity to present character references to support Yousef’s record of behaviour as a young man making his way through his teenage years, with an excellent educational record, however this was rejected on each occasion.

Despite ‘Boy A’ having previously been excluded from education, found in possession of marijuana and posing with knives on social media, the court dismissed that much of this information was not relevant for the jury to be made aware of during the trial.

Following this, in the words of Yousef’s family, ”the defence proceeded to assassinate Yousef’s good character in court, without the opportunity for any in-depth rebuttal of the statements made.”

Following the four week trial at Manchester Crown Court, the jury returned a verdict of ‘not guilty’ in relation to murder and manslaughter charges against ‘Boy A’ and ‘Boy B’ - the two friends who were present during Yousef’s death.

The family of Yousef Makki now wish to instruct legal professionals to investigate the opportunity to put forward a Civil case in relation to the death of their son and brother.

The costs of taking such action have initially been estimated at £100,000.00, with a minimum £20,000 required to secure the court transcripts from the criminal trial, alone.

The campaign, ‘Justice for Yousef’, will be officially launched to the public on Tuesday 15th October at 6pm at Manchester Cathedral and the Makki family welcome all public and private donations in their continued fight to seek justice for Yousef. 

Campaign link: https://www.gofundme.com/f/justice-for-yousef-makki

 

---

Do you have a story for us? Want to tell us about something going on in and around Oldham? Let us know by emailing news@oldham-chronicle.co.uk , calling our Oldham-based newsroom on 0161 633 2121 , tweeting us @oldhamchronicle or messaging us through our Facebook page. All contact will be treated in confidence.