Current News Articles

Ricky Reel Honorary Degree – 25 years later

https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/i-saw-ricky-every-face-27458332?fbclid=IwAR1tB8smBkOPGrfWIJvXYccvHVQjDZtjF_OPcwF_gGFtEfd3JjR4M6ExWnk ‘I saw Ricky in every face sitting there waiting’ – Posthumous degree awarded to Ricky Reel Ricky had vanished in October 1997 after a night out with friends in what his mother believed was a racist attack in Kingston-upon-Thames in Southwest London. A heartbroken mum said she saw her son’s face in every person…

NEWS – Ricky Reel’s Mother Speaks of Huge Toll of Campaigning for Justice for the Last 25 Years

Women’s Hour – February 2023

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001j4h7 Released On: 17 Feb 2023 Available for over a year A mother who has spent 25 years trying to find out what happened to her son.

Evening Standard – Ricky Reel: Met Police to re-examine student’s 1997 river death

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/ricky-reel-death-met-police-brunel-kingston-b1060589.html Ricky Reel: Met Police to re-examine student’s 1997 river death VIEW 1 COMMENTS By  Josh Salisbury15 February 2023 The Met Police is reinvestigating the death of a 20-year-old student whose body was found in the River Thames 25 years ago. Ricky Reel was found dead after going missing from a group of friends on a night out in Kingston-upon-Thames on…

SKY NEWS – Ricky Reel: Hope for family as police re-investigate his death after 25 years

https://news.sky.com/story/ricky-reel-hope-for-family-as-police-re-investigate-his-death-after-25-years-12811957 No one was ever arrested or charged with Ricky’s death and his mother says this was down to institutional racism. Now that the case is being re-examined, Sukhdev Reel says “actions speak louder than words”, as she talks about the toll that campaigning has taken on her health. Shamaan Freeman-Powell News correspondent @Shamaan_SkyNews Wednesday 15…

BBC – Ricky Reel: Met Police to re-examine student’s death

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-64639805 The death of a student whose body was found in the River Thames 25 years ago is to be re-investigated by detectives. Ricky Reel, 20, was found dead a week after he went missing on 15 October 1997 while on a night out in Kingston upon Thames in south-west London. On the night he…

ITV – Ricky Reel: Detectives re-examine case of student whose body was found in the Thames in 1997

https://www.itv.com/news/london/2023-02-15/detectives-re-examine-case-of-student-whose-body-was-found-in-the-thames-in-1997 Detectives are reopening the investigation into the death of a student whose body was found in the Thames in 1997. Ricky Reel was 20 when he went missing while on a night out. The Met says the inquiry will be looked at with ‘fresh eyes’. The development has been welcomed by Ricky’s mum who…

The WatchDog Podcast – Lowkey Talks To Sukdhev Reel About The Justice For Ricky Reel Campaign – Jan 29th, 2023

Premiered Jan 29, 2023 – After being chased by racists through Kingston town centre, Ricky Reel was found dead in the River Thames in October 1997. His family have struggled to convince the Metropolitan Police to investigate his death for many years. Sukdhev Reel was then later informed that SpyCops from the Special Demonstration Squad…

UNISON – Justice for Ricky

https://www.unison.org.uk/news/2023/01/justice-for-ricky/ October 2022 marked the 25th Anniversary of Lakhvinder ‘Ricky’ Reel’s death. Ricky, a 20-year-old student, and his friends were the victims of a racist attack in London. His body was later pulled from the Thames. Ricky’s mother, Sukhdev Reel says “Ricky had everything to live for. He was on a work placement in Central London,…

Good Morning Britain Interview

20th October 2022

BBC London: Ricky Reel: Race ‘played role’ in police’s spying probe, mum claims

BBC London – Published 14 October 2022 The mother of an Asian student who died in 1997 has claimed the police spied on her because of her race. Sukhdev Reel has spent the past 25 years campaigning for answers surrounding her son Ricky’s death. The 20-year-old’s body was found in the River Thames, a week…

Mirror: Mum handed new info in mystery phone call 25 years after son found dead in river

October 2022   Ricky Reel was found dead 25 years ago today – no-one has ever been arrested or charged in connection with his death but now his family have written to police saying someone has approached them with new information Sukhdev Reel believes the police held racist attitudes at the time her son disappeared (…