Remembering Jodie Chesney, whose death rocked Havering

On the fateful evening of March 1, 2019, Jodie was sitting on a bench with friends at Amy Park in Harold Hill when two men emerged from the darkness and one fatally stabbed her in the back.

The 17-year-old Girl Scout from Dagenham was studying A-Levels at Havering Sixth Form College and was weeks away from receiving her Golden Duke of Edinburgh award before she died.

Jodie Chesney was a popular Girl Scout who attended Havering Sixth Form College (Image: Archant)Drug dealer Swenson Ong-a-Kwee, 19, of Hillfoot Road, Collier Row, and his runner Aaron Isaacs, 17, of Westraw Drive, Barking, were involved in a “vendetta for teeth” with rivals when they mistakenly killed Jody, heard the Old Bailey.

They received 26 and 18 years of imprisonment, respectively November 18 of the same year.

The popular student was fondly remembered by her father, Peter Chesney, as “the nicest person” who was very “kind and considerate”.

Jody's death tore her family apart after they struggled to cope with the loss. Mr Chesney said at the time: “We don't know how to deal with this.

Jodi is pictured with her father Peter Chesney (Image: Archant)“Everyone is suffering because she was so good… everyone just can't believe it – why her? It's not one life that deserves to be killed instead of another, but specifically hers, she was so good.”

Read more: In the photo, a “quiet and kind” pensioner, stabbed to death at the train station

Her family described her as a “proud geek” with an infectious personality who never hurt anyone and loved animals, especially dogs.

Her death was so shocking that it sparked a series of events across the area, with thousands of people gathering for a vigil in Amy Park two weeks after her death, where her favorite color, purple, was used to make balloons, flowers and candles. her memory.

Hundreds of people gathered at Amy Park in Harold Hill tonight for a vigil in memory of teenager Jody Chesney (Image: Mark Sepple)Speaking at the vigil, Mr Chesney said: “The challenge and our determination now must be to show that we are a community of individuals, but what does it mean to behave as a community knowing that we are all neighbors because it was a place of unimaginable pain and sorrow.”Rev Martin Bailey of St Paul's Church in Harold Hill during the 2019 vigil. (Image: Mark Sepple)

At her funeral, Scouts led a guard of honor as the community said their goodbyes to Jodie in heartwarming scenes.

Family, friends and local scout groups at the funeral of Jodie Chesney at the Church of the Ascension in 2019. (Image: Archant)On 5 October that year the Scouts also sponsored a walk in her memory from Harold Hill to Dagenham.

A year after her murder, Mr. Chesney created his daughter's legacy in charity The Jody Chesney Foundationto prevent fatal knife violence and support victims.

Mr Chesney said in 2020: “If this could happen to Jodie, my girlfriend, who did absolutely nothing to deserve this, then it could happen to anyone.

Jodie's father Peter Chesney has spoken of his daughter's legacy a year after she was fatally stabbed in Harold Hill (Image: Ken Mears)“There will always be drug wars, but they're killing innocent people like this.

“We want to try to prevent this, we are part of the solution.”

Four years after Jody's stepmother, Joan Chesney, in 2023, told recorder that it is still difficult to “put into words what happened”.

Joanne Chesney (R) said she continues to remember Jodie for her character and personality and hopes her legacy will influence children to become better people (Image: Joan Chesney)She said: “I basically started my life from scratch after it happened.”

Since its inception, the Jody Chesney Foundation has supported a number of projects, such as training people in first aid.

The problem of knife crime, Joan believed, had only worsened since Jodie's death – not just in London, but across the country.

Agreed Metropolitan police statisticsbetween January 2023 and January 2024, knife crime rose by 30% in Havering and by around 16% in London as a whole.

Most recently, on February 20, the 23-year-old was taken to hospital after being found butchered at the Romford Brewery Shopping center parking lot.

A tribute to Jody Chesney was left to Harold Hill after her death in 2019 (Image: Archant)Addressing those who carry knives or are thinking about it, Mr Chesney previously said: “I don't know when it happened, when it was normal to carry knives and use them, it wasn't when I was at school.

“The message is: just think about what you're going to do with your life. If you carry a knife and if you use a knife, you will ruin your life and others – and why not?”