Rishi Sunak backs calls to award Nottingham stab victim Grace O'Malley-Kumar with George Cross for trying to save her friend during knife rampage
Rishi Sunak yesterday backed calls for heroic Nottingham stab victim Grace O'Malley-Kumar to be posthumously awarded the George Cross.
The 19-year-old tried to save her friend Barnaby Webber, also 19, from triple-killer Valdo Calocane when he leapt out on the University of Nottingham students from a darkened alley to launch his knife rampage.
The England under-18s hockey player shunned the opportunity to flee to instead 'valiantly' battle Calocane for 30 seconds screaming 'don't do that' and 'why would you do that?' as he stabbed Barnaby ten times.
The 32-year-old paranoid schizophrenic then turned on Grace and knifed her 23 times.
Mr Sunak yesterday joined Grace's grief-stricken parents Dr Sanjoy Kumar and Sinead O'Malley, MPs, and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer in calling for her to be awarded the George Cross - the highest civilian award for acts of 'the greatest heroism or of the most courage in circumstances of extreme danger'.
Nottingham stabbing victim Grace O'Malley-Kumar 'valiantly' battled triple-killer Valdo Calocane for 30 seconds screaming 'don't do that' and 'why would you do that?' as he stabbed Barnaby ten times
Grace, 19, was knifed to death as she tried to save her friend Barnaby Webber, also 19, who had been attacked by triple-killer Valdo Calocane
The Prime Minister's spokesman told The Sun: 'He'd pay tribute to the bravery that Grace demonstrated whilst faced with perilous and terrifying circumstances.'
The George Cross committee is currently chaired by permanent secretary for the Department for Health Sir Chris Wormald and would first need to assess any recommendation.
The Committee's recommendation is then submitted through the Prime Minister to King Charles who would award the honour.
Mr Sunak's spokesman confirmed he would support Grace's nomination and said the 'leadership example she provided in that tragic circumstance was commendable'.
Grace's 'astonishingly bravery' was recognised during a court hearing in which her father Dr Sanjoy Kumar praised his daughter as a hero who shunned the opportunity to run away.
Grief-stricken mother Sinead O'Malley told The Sun it 'would be a remarkable acknowledgement of her bravery', while her father says the 'world deserves people like Grace'.
University students Grace and Barney, were stabbed to death by paranoid schizophrenic Calocane while walking home from a night out in Nottingham just after 4am on June 13 last year.
Calocane then repeatedly knifed 65-year-old caretaker Ian Coates and leaving him for dead before stealing his van which he used to ram into three other people. They all survived.
He was handed a hospital order for manslaughter by diminished responsibility after Nottingham Crown Court heard he had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia.
Rishi Sunak has backed calls for heroic Nottingham stab victim Grace O'Malley-Kumar to be posthumously awarded the George Cross
Grace's 'astonishingly bravery' was recognised during a court hearing in which her father Dr Sanjoy Kumar praised his daughter as a hero who shunned the opportunity to run away
The George Cross is the highest civilian award for acts of 'the greatest heroism or of the most courage in circumstances of extreme danger'
Calocane was handed a hospital order for manslaughter by diminished responsibility after Nottingham Crown Court heard he had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia
It comes after it was revealed last week that police officers posted in a WhatsApp group that the Nottingham attack victims were 'properly butchered' in an appalling remark.
Nottinghamshire Police are sacking staff on the down-low over misconduct linked to the murders of students Barnaby and Grace, The Times reported.
Officers messaged on WhatsApp to describe how both of the innocent 19-year-olds were 'properly butchered' in a work group chat.
Emma Webber, Barnaby's mother, has spoken out because the Chief Constable Kate Maynell - whose son was in the group chat - refused to pass on a letter explaining the effect of the language of 'excited urgency of spreading big news'.
