Rhys Butler

Don’t know how to put it in words, my son made a mistake and has paid for it with his life.
just turned 17 he was still only a baby.
27th May 2008 my son was brutally murdered,the perpetrator is serving 22 years.
it still only seems like yesterday the police came to my door. Rhys never came home all night and I knew something was wrong. I asked all his friends were he was and phoned hospitals but no one had heard of him. I rang the police who informed me that because of his age I would of been informed if he had been arrested. I knew he had been in the Northwich area so I rang Cheshire police. I was informed that they had no one in custody of that name. I heard from one of Rhys mates that some one had been stabbed in Northwich they said they were to scared to tell me. I rang Cheshire police back who informed me that there had been a stabbing and would get someone to ring me back. The police asked me what Rhys was wearing I didn’t have a clue I was working on a sleep over shift so I hadn’t seen Rhys for a couple of days.
minutes felt like hours I kept ringing the police back. I received a call from an officer saying he was outside my house I explained I lived in a close he must be the road. Two liaison officers knocked at the door. I thought they were coming to tell me that Rhys was in hospital. my worse night mare happened I had to go the Royal Liverpool hospital to identify him of all the hospitals I never rang. When they opened the curtain around Rhys I started to scream in excitement that wasn’t my son lying there they had made a mistake. The liaison officers looked shocked. They informed me that they had taken Rhys finger prints after I rang to report him missing. I still didn’t believe them, my family were telling me that it was Rhys but I couldn’t except it. The mortuary staff had to prove to me that it was Rhys they checked his body and informed me of were his birth marks were but I still didn’t believe them. In shock I went home still waiting for Rhys to walk through the door but it never happened he never walked through my door again.