The children who kill: Are they getting younger?
When 19-year-old Shawn Seesahai was beaten and hacked to death in a savage machete attack in a Wolverhampton park, detectives were shocked to discover his killers were just 12 years old.
Days earlier, in another part of the country, Alfie Lewis, 15, was stabbed to death by a 14-year-old boy outside a primary school in Leeds.
Later the same month, a girl and boy went on trial in Manchester for what was described as the “sadistic” knife murder of 16-year-old Brianna Ghey when they were both aged 15.
Murders carried out by children have always horrified us as a society – but are they getting more common or are killers getting younger?
A Sky News analysis of the available Office for National Statistics data on the number of suspects aged under 16 who have been convicted of homicide – murder, manslaughter and infanticide – shows a relatively flat trendline from 2006/7 to 2022/3.
The percentage of homicide convictions going to under-16s compared with other ages doubled over 10 years, however, from about 1 in 50 in 2012/13 to 1 in 25 in 2022/23.
The 2022/23 figure is the highest since at least 2008/09, but as the percentage of under-16s is low overall the averages can be heavily skewed by relatively few convictions.
Percentage of under-16s convicted of homicide
‘Much more serious and extreme’
Dr Simon Harding, a criminology expert, thinks there’s been “an increase in serious violence in young people” and that there is a greater “acceptance of extreme levels of violence between” children.
“Even something that might have been settled with fisticuffs or anti-social behaviour can suddenly dramatically turn into something much more serious and extreme,” he says.
“What 10 years ago might have been a punch in the face, five years ago might have been a stab to the arm or leg is now a stab to the neck or heart, which can lead to death.”
Bardia Shojaeifard was found guilty of murder after a jury heard how he attacked Alfie on his way home on 7 November last year “in revenge” for an altercation a week earlier.
Shojaeifard posed with knives. Pic: West Yorkshire Police
He had posed for pictures with knives and took a 13cm-long kitchen knife he used to kill Alfie from his home with him to school in the Horsforth area of Leeds.
Sentencing him to life detention with a minimum term of 13 years in June, a judge described Shojaeifard as “outwardly normal” but with a “worrying interest in knives”.
Shawn, who had been walking through Stowlawn playing fields in Wolverhampton with a friend on 13 November last year, was struck on his back, legs and skull, while the fatal wound was more than 20cm deep and punctured his heart.
Read more:
Children and teenagers convicted of knife killings
Grieving sister shocked by age of killers
One of Shawn’s killers poses with a machete
The boys responsible, the UK’s youngest knife murderers – who were detained for at least eight-and-a-half years – are believed to be the youngest children to be found guilty of murder since Robert Thompson and Jon Venables.
Thompson and Venables were aged just 10 when they abducted, tortured and murdered two-year-old James Bulger in 1993 and 11 when they were found guilty of murder.
James Bulger seen on CCTV being led away before his murder
A quarter of a century earlier, 11-year-old Mary Bell was sentenced to life detention in 1968 after being found guilty of manslaughter for fatally strangling two boys, aged four and three.
She was also aged just 10 at the time she killed her first victim.
Bell was 10 when she strangled her first victim. Pic: PA
But Sharon Carr is believed to be the youngest girl in the country to have committed murder.
Carr was 12 when she fatally stabbed and mutilated stranger Katie Rackliff, 18, after she left a nightclub in Camberley, Surrey, in 1992, but she wasn’t convicted for another five years.
In another crime that shocked the nation, Ricky Preddie was 13 and his brother Danny was 12 when they killed 10-year-old schoolboy Damilola Taylor in 2000, although they weren’t jailed for his manslaughter until 2006.
Damilola Taylor. Pic: PA
Is there now a greater ‘willingness to inflict pain’?
So there have always been cases of children who commit murder and other shocking crimes, but Dr Harding says: “We just tend to forget.”
However, from his experience preparing expert reports on court cases involving gang crime, exploitation and modern slavery, he says he has noticed a greater “willingness to inflict pain and suffering”.
Earlier this year, Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe were jailed for life with minimum terms of 22 years and 20 years respectively after they were found guilty of murdering Brianna when they were both aged just 15.
Brianna Ghey’s killers – Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe
Jenkinson lured the vulnerable teenager, who was transgender, to Linear Park in the village of Culcheth, near Warrington, where she was stabbed 28 times in the head, neck, chest and back with a hunting knife on 11 February last year.
The pair had a fascination with violence and torture, prepared a “kill list” and meticulously planned Brianna’s “frenzied and ferocious” murder for weeks, their trial heard.
Jurors were told it was “difficult to fathom” how they could share such “dark thoughts” and carry out such a “disturbing” crime.
Beyond the high-profile cases that attract significant media attention, much of the country’s gang violence, including children killing other children, is largely hidden from the public, says Dr Harding.
He’s seeing “quite extreme things that wouldn’t happen a few years ago”, such as disabled people subjected to levels of cruelty bordering on torture, and young women raped and waterboarded by the people forcing them to sell drugs.
A different Dr Harding, forensic psychiatrist Dr Duncan Harding, works with adults and children who commit serious crimes. He says we really don’t know if killers are getting younger or youth violent crime is increasing because the evidence just isn’t there.
But the reporting of crime and the expansion of social media use means cases which may not have passed the threshold for widespread coverage in the past gain more traction, adding to a perception that it is.
Number of under-16s convicted of homicide
Percentage of under-16s convicted of homicide
‘Dehumanisation is spreading’
Even if youth violence isn’t on the rise, the “horrifying” crimes we see reported aren’t acceptable and we have to, as a society, try to understand what’s going on and try to improve things, Dr Duncan Harding adds.
The psychiatrist, who has provided expert evidence in court cases involving homicide, serious violence and terrorism, and has recently released his memoir The Criminal Mind, says the “dehumanisation” seen in gang violence seems to be spreading beyond gangs.
Our divided society is suffering an existential crisis since the COVID-19 pandemic, which is exacerbated by social media, he says, and he also highlights cuts to services for young people due to austerity as a potential factor.
But “stripping away youth clubs isn’t going to in itself lead to someone who’s going to stab or kill someone”, he says, and children don’t always commit violent crimes because of mental illness or difficulties in their lives.
“Obviously, they’re not normal, well-adjusted people, but in my experience, it’s not as straightforward as that either,” he says. “I don’t think that all offenders are victims.”
Shawn Seesahai was killed in a machete attack. Pic: West Midlands Police
‘You have to have proper sentencing for knife crime’
The potential solutions are just as complicated – the psychiatrist suggests a public health approach that recognises the “epidemic” of knife crime among vulnerable young children, with schools, health workers and police working together to spot the early warning signs.
But he also supports the wider use of stop-and-search and the government ban on so-called zombie-style knives to try to keep weapons out of children’s hands, and says there need to be consequences at the point where youngsters are carrying knives.
Shawn’s parents urge children to “think about what they’re doing” and not to carry a weapon, but want to see tougher sentences for youngsters like the boys who killed their son.
“You have to have a proper sentencing for knife crime,” says his father Suresh Seesahai.
“Murder is murder. Murder is no coming back. If you murder someone they can’t come back… Life sentence is the best for you.”
The King has cancelled engagements on Friday due to “temporary side effects” from his cancer treatment.
Buckingham Palace said after “scheduled and ongoing medical treatment for cancer” on Thursday morning, the King “experienced temporary side effects that required a short period of observation in hospital”.
“His Majesty’s afternoon engagements were therefore postponed,” the statement added.
The King and Queen in Belfast last week. Pic: PA
The palace said the 76-year-old was now back at Clarence House but “as a precautionary measure, acting on medical advice, tomorrow’s diary programme will also be rescheduled”.
“His Majesty would like to send his apologies to all those who may be inconvenienced or disappointed as a result,” the palace said.
Sky’s royal correspondent Laura Bundock said we are being “advised this isn’t a major problem in terms of his ongoing recovery”. A source also described it as a “most minor bump in a road that is very much heading in the right direction”.
The King revealed in February 2024 that he had been diagnosed with cancer and was beginning treatment.
He returned to public duties in April last year and sources suggested in December his treatment would continue in 2025 and was “moving in a positive direction”.
Following the side effects on Thursday, the King had to postpone audiences with ambassadors in the afternoon and was due to visit Birmingham on Friday.
The palace said he was “greatly disappointed” to have to miss the trip but it hopes it can be rescheduled.
The King and Queen are also set for a state visit to Italy in just over a week’s time.
The King unveiled a plaque at London’s Somerset House on Wednesday. Pic: PA
On Wednesday, the King had a typically busy day of activities. He was at London’s Somerset House, where he unveiled a plaque, before hosting a reception at Buckingham Palace in the evening.
Last week, the royals also made a three-day visit to Northern Ireland.
Read more from Sky News:
Macron announces plan for Ukraine ‘reassurance force’
Six dead after tourist submarine sinks
Royal commentator Alastair Bruce told Sky News the King was on good form earlier this week.
“Literally two days ago I was standing in front of him when he invested me with some insignia that I received in the New Year’s Honours and I had a fantastic conversation with him,” he said.
“He was standing there for about an hour and a half, handing out honours and awards. He is maintaining as best he can all the challenges and tasks his role requires.”
UK
‘Child poverty will increase for first time under Labour and it’s paving way for Reform’, Corbyn warns Starmer
Child poverty is set to increase under a Labour government for the first time in history and an “alternative path” is needed to stop the rise of Reform UK, Sir Keir Starmer has been warned.
A joint statement signed by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and other cross-party MPs calls for a wealth tax on those with assets over £10m “so we can rebuild our schools and hospitals”.
Politics Live: Protesters interrupt minister’s speech
The letter, in response to Rachel Reeves’s spring statement, says the chancellor has made a “choice” to push more disabled people and children into poverty by announcing departmental spending cuts while increasing money invested into defence.
“This isn’t about scarcity, it’s about priorities”, it said, adding: “This is set to be the first Labour government in history under which child poverty increases.
“Labour’s failure has paved the way for Reform. We need an alternative path.
“Parroting the rhetoric of Reform UK on migrants, minorities and Muslims just endorses their scapegoating and makes society worse for us all.”
As well as Mr Corbyn, who is now an independent MP, the statement was signed by suspended Labour MPs Sarah Zultana and Apsana Begum, Green MPs, independents and other figures calling for “progressive politics”.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Corbyn blasts Labour over ‘austerity’
It comes ahead of the launch of Reform UK’s local election campaign on Friday, with the party hoping to make gains in May after overtaking Labour in multiple polls.
The letter describes the “alternative path” as one where the richest in society and multinational companies face higher taxes, rent controls are brought in, water and energy are nationalised and money is invested “in welfare, not warfare”.
These measures have previously been ruled out by Ms Reeves, but she is coming under pressure following her spring statement on Wednesday.
Spring statement takeaways
The economic update included a £2.2bn increase in defence spending over the next year to help the government reach its goal of spending 2.5% of GDP on defence by 2027.
The chancellor also deepened previously announced welfare cuts alongside further departmental spending reductions to make up for £10bn in lost fiscal headroom since her October budget, caused by poor growth and global instability.
The government’s own impact assessment estimates another 250,000 people – including 50,000 children – could be pushed into relative poverty by 2030 because of the measures.
However Ms Reeves said that assessment did not take into account steps the government was taking to get people back into work. She has also rejected a separate analysis that suggests the average family could be £1,400 a year worse off by the end of the decade.
Labour MPs unhappy
Several Labour MPs have spoken out against the cuts and some have said they will vote against them. However Ms Reeves is believed to have staved off a full-scale rebellion for now, as most trust she is serious about getting the nation’s finances back on track.
Read More:
Backlash over welfare cuts
Corbyn brands benefit cuts a ‘disgrace’
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Chancellor defends welfare cuts
The chancellor is determined to stick to her self-imposed fiscal rules, including using tax receipts rather than borrowing to account for day-to-day spending.
However she may come under pressure to change course if global factors like Donald Trump’s trade war eat into her fiscal headroom again by the time of the next budget in October – meaning she would have to raise taxes or announce further spending cuts in order to balance the books.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies has warned tax rises are likely in the autumn as Ms Reeves has left herself vulnerable to forecast changes, speculating that pensioners and the wealthiest could be targeted in the raid.
Earlier this week, a YouGov poll found three quarters of the British public would support tax rises on the very richest over expected cuts to public spending, including a 2% wealth tax on net assets worth more than £10m.
The amount of sewage being dumped into English rivers remains “disgraceful”, despite improved monitoring, supposed investment by water companies and threats of penalties from government, the latest data reveals.
Overall, there was a 2.9% decrease in the number of sewage spills last year compared to 2023, according to water company data collected and analysed by the Environment Agency.
Despite this small improvement in the number of events, the duration of spills – the amount of time a water treatment plant discharges untreated sewage into a river or the sea – increased by 0.2%.
“This year’s data shows we are still a long way off where we need to be to stop unnecessary sewage pollution,” said Alan Lovell, chair of the Environment Agency.
The EA says it has secured £10.2bn from water companies to reduce sewage dumping.
“While these improvements get under way, we expect water companies to do what customers pay it to do: ensure their existing assets are maintained and operating properly,” said Mr Lovell.
‘Stark reminder’
The latest data is bad, if not unexpected news, for the government.
“These figures are disgraceful and are a stark reminder of how years of underinvestment have led to water companies discharging unacceptable levels of sewage into our rivers, lakes and seas,” said Environment Secretary Steve Reed.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Redgrave calls for river clean up
The government says part of its £100bn public infrastructure investment plans will address water pollution.
But repairing or replacing thousands of miles of ageing water pipes and dilapidated water treatment works, as well as building new ones, is expected to take decades.
This year, it also introduced the Water (Special Measures) Act which it said it would use to get “tough” on water companies.
The bill allows for the banning of bonuses for water company bosses failing to meet targets and allows criminal charges to be brought against companies in breach of the law.
The government, however, may soon find itself in the stink.
Read more from Sky News:
BAFTA TV Awards nominations revealed
Pair held in probe into vandalism at Trump golf resort
Last week, environment watchdog the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) announced it was launching an investigation into whether proposed plans from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to clean up waterways are in breach of the law.
The OEP is to decide whether DEFRA’s plans, implemented by the Environment Agency and the water regulator Ofwat, are too generic and fail to address the environmental risk of sewage pollution at particular sites.
England, for example, is home to the majority of the world’s chalk stream rivers and streams that are particularly sensitive to sewage pollution.
‘Still broken’
For clean water campaigners, the latest data is just more of the same.
“The water industry is still broken,” said James Wallace, chief executive of River Action.
He added: “The numbers are staggering: over 3.6 million hours of sewage spills from almost 450,000 discharges.
“That’s equivalent to 412 continuous years of sewage polluting our rivers, lakes and seas.”
The frustration for consumers is that many of us will see significant increases to our bills in order to finance the investments being demanded by Ofwat and the government to meet pollution targets.
Last year, an independent Water Commission was launched by the government.
Led by Sir Jon Cunliffe, it is charged with coming up with long-term reforms for the way water companies are regulated.
The commission should look at the structure and ownership of water companies themselves, according to campaigners.
“[It] must put an end to this failed privatisation experiment and force real reform of the industry and regulators,” said Mr Wallace.
“We need to learn from our European neighbours, and use finance and governance models that put people and nature before investors.”
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports12 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway