Four jailed after 'innocent bystander trying to be a peacemaker' stabbed in heart in Leicester

Four people have been jailed after the death of an innocent bystander who was fatally stabbed while attempting to intervene in a fight in Leicester.

Sidney Anthony Palmer, known as 'Sid' to his friends and family, sustained a single stab wound that penetrated his heart and lung on Conduit Street on the evening of Saturday, 30 September, last year.

He was taken to the hospital but died shortly after.

The incident began around 6:15 pm with an altercation between Nathan Pritchard and another man.

Later, outside a store on London Road, Pritchard was punched by an unknown man believed to be acting on behalf of the earlier opponent.

At approximately 7pm, Pritchard confronted the same man again and called Michael Boleyn for backup.

Boleyn then called Victor-Eduard Raja, who arrived on the scene and initiated a violent confrontation.

Raja attacked the man, and when Palmer intervened to act as a peacemaker, Raja armed himself with a knife and fatally stabbed Palmer.

The assailants fled the scene as Palmer was rushed to the hospital.

A post-mortem examination confirmed Palmer died from a stab wound that penetrated his heart and lung.

A murder found that Raja had taken a taxi and was dropped off on Blackbird Road.Raja was later picked up by his mother, Diana Bodrug, who drove him to Yorkshire and assisted in booking him into accommodation under false details and bought him a new phone SIM card.

Raja was tracked and arrested in Yorkshire on 5 October.

Raja, 25, was charged with murder. Pritchard, 29, and Boleyn, 31, were charged with conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm and later with manslaughter and murder, respectively. Diana Bodrug, 49, was charged with assisting an offender for helping Raja evade capture.

Following a trial at Leicester Crown Court, the verdicts were as follows:

• Raja was found guilty of murder and possession of a bladed article in public and sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum of 25 years and six months before parole eligibility.

• Boleyn was found guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to eight years in prison.

• Pritchard pleaded guilty to manslaughter and received a six-year prison sentence.

• Bodrug pleaded guilty to assisting an offender and was sentenced to two years and six months in prison.

The sentencing was concluded on Monday, 24 June.

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Sinski, who was the senior investigating officer, said: “This was a tragic loss of life of a popular man, who was only trying to act as a peacemaker and stop the initial fight taking place.“Sidney was a well known and loved man and his death has understandably had a devastating effect on his family and friends.“CCTV of the incident clearly shows Raja swing his arm holding a knife, more than once at Sidney. This shows Raja’s obvious intent to stab the person pulling him away.”“Our investigation moved at a fast pace to identify, trace, and arrest all those responsible for Sidney’s death and linked offences. This was a team effort with a significant number of officers and staff working long hours and using their professional expertise to secure evidence to convict those involved’’DCI Sinski added: “Knife crime maims, kills, and ruins lives, which is why it continues to remain an ongoing priority for the force. Our #LivesNotKnives campaign has been running for several years and continues to be committed to reducing knife crime offences.”

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