Disclaimer: The article contains mentions of murder. Reader discretion is advised.
In April 1993, a group of white men attacked and killed a man named Stephen Lawrence in London. Reports suggest that Lawrence was waiting for the bus when the crime occurred in Eltham, southeast London. Although police initiated an investigation to find the killers, they stopped investigating the case in August 2020 because they didn’t have enough evidence. However, they reopened the case and found Gary Dobson and David Norris guilty of the murder of Stephen Lawrence. As of now, they are serving their sentence in a prison in the UK.
According to BBC, Stephen Lawrence, who lived with his family in southeast London, dreamt of becoming an architect and was studying for his A-levels. On April 22, 1993, Lawrence was waiting to catch a bus in Eltham when a group of white men attacked him and eventually killed him. The outlet mentioned that he was accompanied by his friend, who escaped the scene unhurt. Moreover, it was reported that the culprits belonged to a gang. A House of Commons report noted that the killers “stabbed” Lawrence to death in an “unprovoked, racist attack.” After police started to investigate the murder, they interrogated some of the suspects.
BBC mentioned that the Metropolitan Police charged some suspects for the murders but later dropped them. Many people criticized the authorities for mishandling the case and not doing a proper investigation. For several years, authorities couldn’t catch Stephen Lawrence‘s killers. However, in 2012, they charged Gary Dobson and David Norris for Lawrence’s slaying and were sentenced to prison. Reportedly, they are serving their sentences at separate prisons in England.
Stephen Lawrence’s murderers: Where are Gary Dobson & David Norris now?
According to The Standard, Gary Dobson and David Norris were found guilty of slaying Stephen Lawrence. The outlet mentioned that Dobson is currently serving his sentence at Gartree Prison in Market Harborough, Leicestershire. Meanwhile, Norris served most of his sentence at Cat-B HMP Garth, Lancashire, and was transferred to another location in 2022. His current whereabouts are unknown.
Even though the police provided some justice to Lawrence’s family, people believe that they didn’t do their work diligently. After receiving a lot of backlash for their initial investigation, an inquiry was initiated against the Metropolitan Police.
Citing the report, BBC stated that the report found the Met Police was “institutionally racist” and that it played a significant role in the failed investigation of Stephen Lawrence’s murder. Although police sent two culprits to jail, many believed there were more suspects in the case. In August 2020, authorities stopped investigating the case. However, they assured Lawrence’s family they would re-investigate if new information reached them.
In 2023, BBC revealed a new suspect who played a significant role in Stephen Lawrence’s murder. They discovered that Matthew White lied about his whereabouts during interrogation. The outlet also mentioned that surveillance photos found White present at the scene. Additionally, his appearance seemed to match the description given by witnesses of the attacker. But for years, police took him as a witness and not a suspect. White died in 2021 at the age of 50.
Recently, Reuters noted that Stephen Lawrence’s family is bringing his body back to the UK after photos of his grave surfaced online. The family buried him in Jamaica. Lawrence’s mother said, “We would like to express our distress at the funeral home’s lack of regard for our feelings and privacy, as evidenced by the decision to leave Stephen’s grave open to the public, rather than closed off.”
The documentary Stephen: The Murder Than Changed A Nation examines the case in great detail. It is available to stream on BBC.
