The War: Young Blood - Knife crime wreaking havoc in NSW country towns

The wave of knife crime that’s had deadly consequences in Sydney’s postcode wars has spread to country NSW. But it’s the disgusting ways parents are finding out their child has died that is causing outrage.

The knife crime wave that has had deadly consequences in Western Sydney’s postcode wars has spread to the country, where it is costing lives at a concerning rate.

Four teenagers have allegedly been killed by another teen with a knife in rural areas in just the past year.

Casino, a town of around 10,000 people on the far north coast of NSW, was rocked in May and June when friends Lachie Andrews and Ned Gronow died in the space of a month, sparking baseless rumours of a “kill list”.

As part of its investigation into knife crime for mini docu-series The War: Young Blood, The Daily Telegraph visited the town with long-time local Clarence Thompson recalling the night Lachie was fatally knifed in the carpark of KFC – and saying he believes drugs have played a major role in a rise in youth violence.

“That night that happened, I seen that young boy’s body,” Mr Thompson said.

Lachlan Andrews - here as a young teen - had travelled to Casino to work as a tradesman.

Linda Pridham (right) with her daughter Alecia Dopson. Linda's teenage son Lachlan Andrews was stabbed to death.

“Young kids have got nothing to do around here, but that’s not an excuse.”

Lachie had only moved to Casino from Canberra a few months before his mother Linda Pridham got a call one night to say there was something she needed to see on Snapchat.

“My other daughter had rang me to tell me what had happened because it was on Snapchat,” Ms Pridham said.

“So obviously then I was going through social media, which is a horrible thing.

“There were videos of it, the kids videoed it and put it all over social media, I didn’t see any of that.”

Ms Pridham admits Lachie had some issues in his teenage years, as many children do, but she said she hoped the move up to Casino where he had a full time job would help set him up for life – not cost him his life.

“As much as I didn’t want him to go it was a beautiful opportunity for him and he needed this to prove (to) himself,” she said.

Linda Pridham (middle), spoke to The Daily Telegraph about the death of her son Lachlan Andrews in Casino earlier this year.

“He had his ticket booked that day … he was on his way back down to surprise us all.”

A month after Lachie was killed outside KFC in Casino his mate Ned Gronow was fatally knifed inside his family home.

The deaths of two friends sparked concerns a list of teenagers in Casino were being targeted, a rumour that sent the town rumour mill into overdrive before being debunked by local police.

Ms Pridham said what the death of her son and his mate show is how dangerous knives can be – something she doesn’t believe kids realise until it’s too late.

Lachie (with his mum Linda Pridham) was allegedly stabbed to death outside KFC in May.

“I don’t think they realise the consequences of their actions,” she said.

“To walk into something with a weapon, I don’t think they realise it’s going to happen.”

The deaths of Lachie and Ned in Casino came a few months after a 13-year-old boy was fatally stabbed at Kariong, on the NSW Central Coast, in January.

A few months before that just down the road in Swansea, Kane Apthorpe was attacked with a knife on Parbury St where he collapsed and died.

Anna Reid, whose 16-year-old son Kane Apthorpe was fatally stabbed, found out her son had died through social media.

His mother Anna Reid said she too found out about her son’s death through social media.

“I actually received a message late at night from someone asking if I was Kane’s mother for a start and then proceeding to tell me he was dead,” Ms Reid said.

“It was several hours after that police arrived at my door to notify me in person.

“Even now, a year on, I still have anxiety – I will always have depression moments because I’ll wake up and I’ll see something funny on Facebook and go to send it to Kane and I can’t.”

The 17-year-old boy who has pleaded guilty to one count of murder and one count of causing grievous bodily harm with intent is due to be sentenced next year.