Britain's youngest knife murderers at just 12 sentenced to life

The two boys were just 12 years old when they killed 'humble and hardworking' teeager Shawn Seesahai without provocation as he walked on a playing field

Two boys have been sentenced after killing a "humble and hardworking" 19-year-old in an unprovoked attack. Now both 13, the two - who cannot be named for legal reasons - were just 12 year old when they carried out the brutal murder.

When they were convicted in June they became the youngest killers in the UK since James Bulger was murdered more than three decades ago. They are the youngest-ever knife killers in the country.

On Friday the two were both sentenced to life with a minimum term of eight-and-a-half years. The two, both from Wolverhampton, stabbed their 19-year-old victim in the heart during the attack on the city's Stowlawn playing fields on November 13 last year.

Nottingham Crown Court was told on Thursday they were “the youngest knife murderers”. They are believed to be the youngest defendants convicted of murder in the UK since Robert Thompson and Jon Venables, then both aged 11, were found guilty in 1993 of killing two-year-old James Bulger.

Both teenagers moved from the dock to sit in the back row of the court benches on Friday as High Court judge Mrs Justice Tipples began her sentencing. She told them: “When you killed Shawn he was 19, starting out in his adult life with everything to live for."

She added: “His parents have lost their son. His sister has lost her brother. What you did is horrific and shocking. You did not know Shawn, he was a stranger to you. You both killed Shawn in an attack that lasted less than a minute when he asked you to move (from a bench).

"I am sure you intended to kill him.” The judge said she could not be sure which of the two inflicted the 23cm-deep wound which almost passed all the way through Mr Seesahai’s body.

Mr Seesahai's family told in a victim impact statement read to the hearing that they are haunted by thoughts of how scared he must have been when he was killed. Relatives of Anguilla-born Mr Seesahai described his murder as tragic, unexpected and senseless, and having been committed “for no reason at all”.

Both boys blamed the other for inflicting four wounds with the machete, after a dispute with the victim about sitting on a park bench. One of the boys admitted possession of the knife prior to the trial, while the other was found guilty of the same charge when they were both unanimously convicted of murder on June 10.

Speaking after the sentencing senior West Midlands Police officer Chief Superintendent Kim Madill, said: “Shawn was only 19 when his life was taken at the hands of two boys, then aged just 12, who had armed themselves with a machete.

“That reality has had a huge impact on us all, it is both shocking and saddening. The impact of knife crime is devastating no matter where you live in the country, this is an issue that affects us all.

“Much work has been done and we have had successes in some areas, however, this is clearly not enough. We are listening to families affected by knife crime and acting on their feedback to see what more we can do with partners to stop the devastation caused by knife crime.

“Our responsibility is to work together with partners to understand why children and young people think it is OK to carry weapons and take further action to stop this extremely dangerous behaviour."

And Jonathan Roe, spokesman for the Crown Prosecution Service spokesman, said: “As prosecutors, we often deal with harrowing cases, but this case is particularly distressing due to the complete senselessness and devastating consequences of the defendants’ actions The defendants at the age of 12 should have been enjoying their childhood rather than arming themselves with a machete and killing an innocent person.

“Shawn Seesahai lost his life in a horrifically cruel way. I hope today’s sentencing serves as a reminder of the dangers of carrying machetes. Shawn’s family have shown remarkable strength and dignity in the aftermath of such a tragedy and our thoughts are with them at this difficult time.”