Trio who killed 16-year-old Mikey Roynon at house party named
The teenage killers of Mikey Roynon, who was stabbed to death with a large hunting-style knife at a birthday party, have been sentenced and named.
Three teenagers who killed 16-year-old Mikey Roynon at a birthday party in Bath have been detained.
Mikey died after being stabbed in the neck with a knife following an incident in the back garden of a house in the Weston area on 10 June.
Shane Cunningham, 16, fatally stabbed Mikey Roynon in the neck with the large knife and was convicted of his murder.
Cunningham's two friends, Cartel Bushnell and Leo Knight, also 16, were convicted of manslaughter after being acquitted of murder.
Mr Justice Saini imposed a life sentence at Bristol Crown Court on Friday 3 May and ordered that Cunningham should serve a minimum term of 16 years custody before he can be considered for parole.
The 999 call made at the party after Mikey was stabbed to death
Meanwhile Bushnell was sentenced to nine years in jail and Knight was jailed for nine years and six months.
Passing sentence, the judge praised the family of Mikey for their dignity during the trial.
“I have this morning heard the moving victim personal statements from Mikey’s mother, father and grandmother,” he said.
“On the day Mikey was killed he was only 16 and still a child. His family have suffered a loss that is unimaginable.
Watch footage of Mikey Roynon boarding a bus with his friends before heading to the party where he was killed
“Mikey had a big musical career ahead of him and although he faced a number of challenges in his life, his future was promising.”
The judge went on: “Bristol and its surrounding areas are in the middle of a plague of knife crime. That plague has continued since this trial concluded.
“The lives of boys who carry knives continue to be taken by those who also carry knives.”
Watch footage on a bus travelling from Devizes showing Leo Knight hiding a large knife in his trousers
During the trial, jurors were shown CCTV footage on a bus of the three defendants arriving in Bath for the party, from Wiltshire.
Leo Knight was seen to have a knife down his trousers when he was travelling on the bus.
Police, paramedics and doctors were quickly at the scene of the incident but could not save Mikey’s life.
The defendants left the scene and later disposed of their weapons, and two were recovered by the police.
In a statement read out in court during the hearing, Mikey’s mum, Hayley Ryall, described the impact her son’s death had on her.
She said: “Every morning I wake up and it hurts as much as the last morning.
“I keep having awful dreams that Mikey is lost and I’m looking for him, but even the awful dreams are better than waking up to reality.
“At least in my dreams he is somewhere, whereas in reality he is gone.”
Front door camera footage showing the offenders leave the scene of the stabbing at the party
In his statement, Mikey's dad, Michael Roynon, said: "There is no punishment for those responsible that will take away the pain that I feel.
"Nothing will bring Mikey back and as a dad losing my only son, I feel like I have a life sentence and will have to live with this forever.
"I can only hope that as time goes on, I feel less wounded and can find a way to rebuild my heart and life which has been shattered by Mikey's death."
During the trial, Cunningham claimed he was acting in self-defence when he stabbed Mikey after claiming Mikey had swung a knife towards his friends in the garden of the property.
Bushnell was sentenced to nine years in jail and was told he must serve at least two thirds of this before being considered for parole.
Knight, who unlike Cunningham and Bushnell denied having a knife but was found guilty of this offence by the jury, was jailed for nine years and six months. He too will also have to serve at least two thirds of this sentence.