15-year-old boy guilty of murdering Muhammad Hassam Ali in Birmingham city centre stabbing

A 15-year-old boy has been found guilty of murdering Muhammad Hassam Ali by stabbing him in the heart in Birmingham city centre.

Ali, 17, died in hospital hours after he and his friend were followed by two masked males before he was fatally stabbed as they sat in Victoria Square on January 20.

Two 15-year-olds, who cannot be named because of their age, have been on trial for the 17-year-old's murder and possession of a knife at Coventry Crown Court.

A jury of six men and six women took just over four hours to return unanimous verdicts on Friday.

They found the youth who carried out the fatal attack guilty of murder and possessing a knife and his friend, who was standing nearby when the stabbing happened, guilty of manslaughter and possessing a knife.

The court heard Ali and his friend had got hot chocolate at a coffee shop before heading to the square, where they “simply sat down chatting and using their phones” when they were approached by the two youths “as if from nowhere”.

They had followed them from Grand Central Shopping Centre and through New Street before confronting Ali and his friend at Victoria Square and did not introduce themselves when they approached, instead asking Ali and his friend if they knew who had “jumped a mate” of theirs a week before, and where they came from.

After a conversation lasting about four minutes, in which the killer alleged Ali and his friend told them to “f*** off” and “p**s off”, Ali allegedly said: “Bro, I don’t know what you’re talking about, you’re p*sing me off”, which prompted one of the youths to pull out a large knife and stab him in the chest before they both fled.

Giving evidence, the youth, who had the knife in his trousers before stabbing Ali and was wearing a Covid-style face mask, a hat and gloves, told the court he only pulled out the knife to “scare” Ali and his friend, and that he did not intend to seriously harm or kill anyone.

He said he carried a knife when he went to busy places like Birmingham city centre for protection as he had been attacked several times before, and that he felt “regretful and upset” when he learned he had killed Ali.

The other youth, who did not give evidence during the trial but spoke to police in an interview after he was arrested, said he had been “shocked and crying” after the attack, claiming he did not know his friend had a knife on him until he produced it during the confrontation.

He said he tried to convince the stabber to leave Ali and his friend alone so they could go and get food as planned, but he wanted to confront them about an alleged incident that had happened previously.

He also said he had never seen Ali or his friend before and only went along with the killer in case he “got battered”.

There were sobs from the public gallery as the jury returned their verdicts on Friday.

Judge Mr Justice Garnham had to ask for silence as he addressed the jury following their deliberations.

He said: “Thank you very much, it has been obvious to everyone that you have been following and listening to the arguments.

“That is now formally the end of your work in this case.”

Mr Justice Garnham also thanked West Midlands Police for their work on the case, adding: “This has not been an easy case to try.”

The youths will be sentenced on a date to be fixed in early October.

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