Murdered Damilola Taylor’s dad says ‘society’s gone mad’ after shooting of nine-year-old Olivia
THE dad of murdered Damilola Taylor spoke of his horror at the shooting of Olivia Pratt-Korbel.
Anti-crime campaigner Richard Taylor said: “It is an outrage . . . society is going crazy.
“For someone to kill a small innocent child in their home surely proves society has gone mad.”
Mr Taylor’s son Damilola, ten, was stabbed with a broken bottle on his way home from school in Peckham, South London, in 2000.
He set up a trust in his son’s name and was awarded the OBE for his battle against crime.
Mr Taylor said: “Every child should be safe in their home. It is an outrage that she was not.
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“This poor young girl was too young and innocent for something like this to happen to her.
“At that age a child knows nothing about this wicked world.
“She had so much to live for, so much life ahead of her.
“She should be looking forward to going back to school to be with friends, but she will be missing all that. The impact of this will devastate everyone.
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“There is a problem with society when the most vulnerable are not safe. Shooting a girl of nine in her home is like something which would happen in the worst parts of America.
“This country did not used to be like that. The police are doing their best but we have lost control of law and order when this kind of atrocity can happen.”
Mr Taylor expressed condolences to Olivia’s family, saying: “My own heart grieves for them.”
He added: “The man who did this has no heart. He is part of a gun culture which is out of control.
“When gangsters shoot an innocent girl dead in her own home it is not just a tragedy for her and her family but for all of us.”
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Retired Met Police chief Mick Neville said: “No one is safe — young or old, rich or poor.
“But this feels like it should be a watershed moment, a time when we get a grip of the criminal justice system to make our country a place where children are safe in their own homes.”