A heartbroken mum who's 17-year-old son was fatally stabbed recalls the final conversation she had with him before he left the house for a few drinks with his pals and never returned home. Tracy Marsland's eyes filled with tears as she revealed her 'beautiful' son's final words to her were 'see you, mum, I love you' as she cried, 'I never saw him again'.
Just hours later, Callum Riley was found badly injured and 'screaming for help' in the garden of a house in Atholl Drive, Heywood in the early hours of September 17 last year. The teen sadly died a short while later from his injuries and detectives launched a murder investigation, the Manchester Evening News reports.
Three people have been arrested on suspicion of his murder but not charged and five months on from Callum's death, the killer has still not been brought to justice. On the day before his body was found, groundworker Callum finished his work early and met up with his girlfriend.
He then returned home to get ready for a night out with his friends and seemed 'happy and excited' for the evening ahead. His mum said: "His last words were 'I love you mum' with that beautiful smile.
"I said 'have a good night and be careful'. I always said that to him. Off he went and I didn't see him again."
Ms Marsland said she does not fully know what led to her son's death last September but she believes he was stabbed after becoming involved in an argument. The first feeling she had that something was wrong was when Callum didn't reply to her texts or answer his calls which was unusual for him.
Mrs Marsland said: "I just knew there was something. He would always answer his phone and tell me where he is. He has never stayed out overnight without telling me.
"He would always ring and say he was on his way back because he knows I worried. That night, there was nothing." The mum was becoming increasingly concerned but she could never have imagined the horror unfolding a short distance from her home on Heywood's Darnhill estate.
She contacted Callum's girlfriend, Kenzi who also didn't know where he was and despite it being in the early hours of the morning, Ms Marsland went out to search for her son.
After driving around with no success, she returned home and was told that a body had been found on the estate as she revealed the 'horrendous' moment she knew it was her son that had been killed.
Ms Marsland who has terminal cancer said that the days were a blur after Callum's death turned into a murder investigation. Three men, aged 33, 25 and 16, were arrested on suspicion of murder while two women, aged 34 and 18, were arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.
All five suspects have since been released on bail. Two men, both aged 19 were also arrested on suspicion of criminal damage, one had been released on bail while another has been released under investigation.
Greater Manchester Police have confirmed that the murder probe remains ongoing. The coroner's record concluded Callum's provisional cause of death to be down to a stab wound.
Floods of tributes poured in on social media as hundreds of people paid tribute to Callum who was nicknamed 'Russell' by his pals due to his likeness as a child to a character in the Pixar film Up. A vigil was held for him in Heywood and hundreds of mourners lined the streets ahead of his funeral.
Ms Marsland said she was 'blown away' by the love and support she received following her son's death, including from the charity Restoring Hope. She said: "The community scooped us up as a family and they held me together like glue.
Paying tribute to her 'beautiful' son, she said: "Callum was extremely popular. I don't think you'll find anybody in Heywood that hasn't got something nice thing to say about him.
"He had a lovely heart and was fun and loving. He was good with me, caring and kind. He was a beautiful soul. I love him millions and miss him immeasurably."
Callum was the youngest of three brothers in a close-knit family and in 2019, he took the news of his mother's cancer diagnosis very hard. Ms Marsland said: "He had to grow up fast. He became such a lovely young man. Callum, Nile and Josh just looked after me, they were amazing.
"We were really close as a family. Callum was very protective. He knew how to make me laugh and what jokes to crack."
Ms Marsland said she is so devastated by the 'immeasurable' loss of her son, that she has even considered 'giving up' her cancer treatment. The heartbroken mum said she knows she will struggle when his 18th birthday comes along in July which he was planning on going on holiday for.
She said: "Little things like cancelling a passport are really hard to do, when you know he should be on a plane and living his life. It is tough. Not hearing the door slamming, silly little things like that. Stomping upstairs, I'd give anything to hear that stomp up the stairs again - anything.
"I say to myself every day that it should have been me. I know I'm dying. Cancer is going to take me, so why couldn't I go and my boy live?" Det Insp Louise Edwards, of GMP’s Major Incident Team, said: “The is still very much a live investigation as we build up a full picture of what happened on that tragic night.
"Our thoughts are always with Callum’s family, who have been supported by specialist officer and kept informed of investigative updates.”
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