The children who kill: Are they getting younger?

Published

6 months ago

September 28, 2024

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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.

‘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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

‘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.”

‘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.”

UK

Stephen Lawrence killer David Norris ‘admits role in attack’, says Parole Board

Published

5 hours ago

March 21, 2025

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Stephen Lawrence killer David Norris 'admits role in attack', says Parole Board

Reports suggest one of Stephen Lawrence’s killers has accepted he was at the scene of the murder but claims he did not wield the knife, the Parole Board has said.

The board made the disclosure as it agreed a hearing on freeing David Norris should take place in public.

The racist murder of Mr Lawrence, 18, is one of the most notorious cases of modern times.

He was killed in an unprovoked attack by a gang of five or six white youths as he waited to catch a bus in Eltham, southeast London, in April 1993.

Norris, now 48, was one of only two people, alongside Gary Dobson, to be jailed for the murder in 2012.

His minimum jail term expired in December and he’s now set to be considered for release on licence.

As part of the background to the case, the Parole Board said Norris had continued to deny the offence after his trial.

However, it said he appeared to have changed his story.

“Recent reports now suggest he has accepted he was present at the scene and punched the victim but claims that he did not wield the knife,” said the board’s vice chair Peter Rook KC.

“He does not accept he holds racist views.”

The nature of the reports is not detailed by the Parole Board.

The board said Norris had been diagnosed with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) after several assaults on him in prison.

Norris’s solicitors argued that holding his hearing in public would increase the risk he faces and said he would “suffer additional emotional distress”, the board added.

Among other objections, his lawyers said there was “no good reason” to depart from the usual protocol of private hearings – and that Norris wouldn’t be able to give his “best evidence” in public.

The board disagreed and approved the media request – supported by Stephen’s parents – to hold it in the open.

Mr Rook said Norris’s psychological reports had been considered, but were trumped by factors such as the ongoing public interest in the case.

He said this interest remained high due to the failings and racism that marred the case – detailed in the 1999 Macpherson report.

“I have concluded that it is in the interests of justice for there to be a public hearing in this case,” he wrote.

“The compelling factors in favour of a public hearing outweigh the points raised on Mr Norris’ behalf. I am satisfied that the Parole Board’s ability to carry out its core functions will not be compromised by this hearing being in public.”

A date for the hearing has still to be set.

UK

Heathrow Airport closed after ‘significant power outage’ due to nearby fire

Published

6 hours ago

March 21, 2025

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Heathrow Airport closed after 'significant power outage' due to nearby fire

Heathrow Airport is to remain shut until midnight due to a large fire at a nearby electricity substation.

A spokesperson said it was “experiencing a significant power outage across the airport” and warned passengers to stay away until further notice.

A statement said: “Whilst fire crews are responding to the incident, we do not have clarity on when power may be reliably restored.

“To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, we have no choice but to close Heathrow until 23h59 on 21 March 2025.”

“We expect significant disruption over the coming days and passengers should not travel to the airport under any circumstances until the airport reopens,” the statement added.

The fire is at a substation in Hayes, about 1.5 miles away, and thousands of homes are believed to be without power.

Images show large flames and plumes of thick black smoke.

London Heathrow is one of the world’s busiest airports and had a record 83.9 million passengers last year, with a plane landing or taking off around every 45 seconds.

The airport’s website is currently down as travellers scramble for information.

London Fire Brigade (LFB) said overnight that 10 engines and around 70 firefighters were at the scene on Nestles Avenue.

It said a transformer within the substation is alight, but the cause is so far unknown.

Around 150 people have been evacuated and a 200-metre cordon is in place.

LFB said it had received more than 190 calls over the incident – with the first received at 11.23pm.

Residents have been urged to keep windows and doors closed due to the “significant amount of smoke”.

Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks said at 12.23am on X that a “widespread power cut” was affecting Hayes, Hounslow and surrounding areas.

However, it estimated it would be “resolved by 3am”

A graphic on the company’s website suggested around 16,000 homes were affected.

Firefighters from Heathrow, Hayes, Hillingdon, Southall and other stations are all involved in the response.

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UK

Putin will break any peace deal where Ukraine is not ‘defended’ by ‘coalition of the willing’, Starmer warns

Published

7 hours ago

March 20, 2025

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Putin will break any peace deal where Ukraine is not 'defended' by 'coalition of the willing', Starmer warns

Vladimir Putin will break any peace agreement with Ukraine that is not “defended” by an international coalition of forces, the British prime minister has said.

Sir Keir Starmer was talking on Thursday as he visited a UK base to meet a group of senior military officers from more than 30 nations tasked with turning a political desire to support Kyiv into an actionable plan to help protect the country from land, sea and air in the event of a ceasefire.

But, with Donald Trump pushing hard for Russia and Ukraine to stop fighting now, there are concerns among analysts that the “coalition of the willing” – led by the UK and France – will be overtaken by events, with peace declared before it has time to get its act together.

In a sign of the challenge, the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa was struck on Thursday night by what its governor described as a “massive” Russian drone attack even as the US president talked up the prospects for peace.

US negotiators are set to meet separately with Ukrainian and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia on Monday to try to make progress on a ceasefire.

Mr Trump also claimed he was on the brink of signing an economic deal with Ukraine – something that has been trailed for weeks as a key step in strengthening US-Ukraine relations and locking in Washington’s support for Kyiv’s future, but has yet to materialise.

Ukraine war latest: Follow live updates

Clearly alive to the urgency to act, Sir Keir greeted the group of visiting military planners at the UK’s Permanent Joint Headquarters at Northwood, on the edge of London.

They gathered around a large map of Ukraine spread out across a table.

“Now is the time to be doing this,” the prime minister told the officers from a range of European and other allied countries, including Turkey, the Netherlands and Canada. Ukrainian officers were also present as well as NATO officials.

“We don’t know what the outcome of any [peace] talks is going to be, but we do know that if there is a deal, it’s important to have done the preparation beforehand.”

The size and shape of what Western officials have described as a “reassurance force” for Ukraine are unclear – so too what kind of military headquarters would command it.

Initial briefings on the concept suggested it could involve thousands of troops deployed to cities and to protect critical infrastructure such as nuclear power stations, but kept back from frontline areas, while Royal Air Force warplanes and other countries’ jets would protect Ukraine’s skies, and various navies, including the Royal Navy, would help secure the sea.

Yet, without US support, the European offer, even with backing from other aligned nations such as Canada, would not act as much of a deterrence to Russia.

And that is if the coalition is ready to deploy in time for any ceasefire.

The British prime minister said peace would only endure if “it is a defended deal”.

He offered a sense of what the military planners have been tasked with delivering after the political leaders of all the countries involved agreed to work together to help Ukraine.

“What’s happening here is turning that political intention into reality – the concept into plans, whether that’s in relation to what might happen at sea or air or defending borders,” Sir Keir said.

“But it is vitally important we do that work because we know one thing for certain, which is a deal without anything behind it is something that Putin will breach.

“We know that because it’s happened before. And I’m absolutely clear in my mind it will happen again.”