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A man has been given a life sentence with a lowest sentence of 23 years for the killing of a teenage Syrian refugee after the teenager passed his partner in downtown Huddersfield.

Trial Hears Particulars of Deadly Confrontation

The court in Leeds was told how the accused, aged 20, attacked with a knife the victim, sixteen, soon after the young man walked by his companion. He was convicted of homicide on the fourth day of the week.

The teenager, who had fled conflict-ridden his Syrian hometown after being hurt in a blast, had been living in the Huddersfield area for only a couple of weeks when he crossed paths with the defendant, who had been for a jobcentre appointment that day and was planning to get cosmetic adhesive with his partner.

Particulars of the Assault

Leeds crown court heard that Franco – who had consumed cannabis, cocaine, a prescription medication, an anesthetic and codeine – took “a minor offense” to Ahmad “innocuously” walking past his partner in the public space.

Surveillance tape displayed the man uttering words to the victim, and calling him over after a short verbal altercation. As Ahmad approached, the individual deployed the weapon on a flick knife he was holding in his pants and plunged it into the teenager's throat.

Trial Outcome and Judgment

Franco refuted the murder charge, but was convicted by a jury who took a little more than three hours to decide. He pleaded guilty to possessing a knife in a public area.

While delivering the judgment on the fifth day of the week, the presiding judge said that upon spotting the teenager, the man “singled him out and lured him to within your range to assault before killing him”. He said the defendant's assertion to have spotted a blade in the boy's clothing was “a lie”.

The judge said of Ahmad that “it is a testament to the doctors and nurses trying to save his life and his desire to survive he even reached the hospital with signs of life, but in fact his trauma were lethal”.

Relatives Impact and Statement

Reading out a statement prepared by Ahmad’s uncle Ghazwan Al Ibrahim, with help from his family, the legal representative told the judges that the teenager’s father had experienced cardiac arrest upon being informed of his boy's killing, leading to an operation.

“It is hard to express the consequence of their awful offense and the influence it had over all involved,” the statement said. “The victim's mother still weeps over his belongings as they remind her of him.”

Ghazwan, who said the boy was dear to him and he felt remorseful he could not protect him, went on to explain that Ahmad had thought he had found “the land of peace and the achievement of aspirations” in England, but instead was “tragically removed by the unnecessary and sudden attack”.

“In my role as his uncle, I will always feel responsible that the boy had arrived in Britain, and I could not keep him safe,” he said in a statement after the judgment. “Dear Ahmad we love you, we miss you and we will do for ever.”

History of the Teenager

The proceedings learned the victim had journeyed for a quarter of a year to get to England from Syria, visiting a shelter for youths in Swansea and going to school in the local college before arriving in West Yorkshire. The boy had hoped to work as a doctor, driven in part by a wish to care for his mom, who was affected by a persistent condition.