A woman whose former partner was murdered in a cowardly town centre attack has shaved her hair off to raise awareness and funds to combat knife crime, nearly three years after his murderer was put in prison for life.

John Bell was stabbed in the back after walking away from an argument as he left a friend’s house.

Mr Bell was found seriously injured in a side street adjacent to Fusion restaurant in Cardigan. He had been stabbed seven times in the back while walking away from an aggressive man at nearby Golwg y Castell.

Despite efforts to save him, he lost a significant amount of blood died at the scene.

A post-mortem examination revealed seven stab wounds to Mr Bell’s back, which resulted in him losing a significant amount of blood.

His murderer Ashley Keegan was jailed for life for the ‘brutal and cowardly’ attack.

A sentencing hearing in December 2021 heard that Keegan had been drinking with his behaviour deteriorating throughout that afternoon.

He instigated an altercation which Mr Bell walked away from. Keegan then returned to the garden of a premises and picked up a knife that had been left there.

When he died Mr Bell had a teenage daughter with former partner Louise Faller.

“John was a good-hearted man,” said Louise. “His heart was good and he had a lot of love, as a first time dad he was great he took to it naturally.

“John and I would forever have the bond of being first time parents together. He was a lovely man.”

Louise said that the impact of Mr Bell’s death is huge on both his family and their daughter.

“There is still sadness hurt and anger about it,” she said.

“Our daughter Cindy will be turning 18 years old on December 4.

“She isn’t the same young girl I once knew, the impact has been devastating and has changed the way she sees people and life.

“Her only comfort is me, her siblings and of course her cats, they are her babies and bring her so much love and peace.”

On Saturday Louise had all her hair shaved off in a buzz cut at Cardigan’s Hair Studio to raise money for Lives not Knives, a youth-led charity dedicated to preventing youth violence by offering tailored mentorship and advice to young people aged nine to 21.

“I’ve chosen to shave all my hair off because it marks nearly three years since he [Keegan] was sentenced for what he did.

“I wanted to highlight knife crime to get the word out for how easily a life can be taken with the blink of an eye, also how dangerous knives are.

“[I urge people] please don’t pick up a knife or any weapon in fact; it really is a ripple effect of damage and broken hearts left behind.”

Louise is close to reaching her total of raising £500 for Lives not Knives.

“I couldn’t be more thankful for every single person who has donated and given me support.

“[It] really has and will help this world in a small but huge way. Thank you from my heart.”

To donate, visit https://www.justgiving.com/page/louise-faller-1727971243840.