The boys, who are now 13, were roaming the streets of Wolverhampton when they confronted Shawn Seesahai (right) and his friend (Pictures: PA)
The UK’s youngest knife murderers – who were aged just 12 when they hacked a man to death with a machete ‘for no reason at all’ – have each been jailed for at least eight and a half years.
The boys, who are now 13, were roaming the streets of Wolverhampton when they confronted Shawn Seesahai, 19, and his friend on the Stowlawn playing fields last November 13.
His friend fled but Shawn fell to the floor where he was punched, kicked, stamped on and ‘chopped’ at with the 42.5cm-long blade, with one blow piercing his heart.
The pair are believed to be the youngest defendants convicted of murder in Britain since Robert Thompson and Jon Venables, both then aged 11, were found guilty in 1993 of killing two-year-old James Bulger.
Prosecutor Michelle Heeley KC told the court on Thursday they were ‘the youngest knife murderers’ and there was ‘little precedent’ when it comes to passing sentence.
The judge, Mrs Justice Tipples – who earlier rejected a media application to name the killers – sentenced the pair at Nottingham Crown Court today.
Shawn’s relatives, who were forced to take out a loan to travel to the UK to view the 20-day trial, watched the sentencing hearing via a videolink.
Shawn Seesahai’s family said his murder was ‘tagic and senseless’ (Picture: Family Handout/PA)
In a statement, they said his murder had been ‘tragic, unexpected and senseless’.
They went on: ‘As a family we are struggling in so many ways since Shawn was taken from us, especially in the horrific way in which he was taken.
‘Losing a child is a parent’s worst nightmare. To put it all down in a statement on how it has impacted our lives would take more than a day to read.
‘It has left a huge hole in the pit of our stomach which nothing can fill, we are devastated as a family, totally heartbroken and confused.’
The family members, including parents Suresh and Maneshwary and sister Shana, added: ‘Mentally it has been hard for any of us to function normally. None of us have had an unbroken night’s sleep since Shawn was taken from us.
‘Every time I close my eyes all I can think about are what his last moments were and how scared he must have been. It continually breaks my heart.
Why can’t the killers be named?
The killers are thought to be the youngest convicted of murder in Britain since Robert Thompson and Jon Venables.
But while those two were named, the two 13-year-olds who stabbed Shawn Seesahai – three years older than Thompson and Venables – cannot be.
Several media organisations argued they should be stripped of the anonymity granted them by an order under the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act.
Jude Bunting KC, representing three of the media organisations, told the court: ‘This point is squarely present in this case, which has attracted local concern and national revulsion.
‘We are in the realm of knife crime, which is an …read more
Source:: Metro
