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A man has been jailed for life with a lowest sentence of 23 years for the homicide of a young Syrian asylum seeker after the boy passed his companion in the center of Huddersfield.

Trial Hears Particulars of Fatal Confrontation

Leeds crown court heard how the defendant, twenty, stabbed the teenager, aged 16, soon after the young man brushed past his companion. He was convicted of the killing on last Thursday.

Ahmad, who had left battle-scarred Homs after being wounded in a explosion, had been living in the local community for only a short period when he met his attacker, who had been for a employment office visit that day and was planning to get cosmetic adhesive with his partner.

Details of the Assault

Leeds crown court learned that the defendant – who had used weed, a stimulant drug, diazepam, ketamine and a painkiller – took “a trivial issue” to the boy “harmlessly” walking past his girlfriend in the public space.

CCTV footage revealed Franco making a remark to Ahmad, and gesturing him closer after a brief exchange. As the boy approached, Franco opened the blade on a folding knife he was carrying in his pants and thrust it into the teenager's throat.

Verdict and Judgment

The accused denied murder, but was convicted by a trial jury who took a little more than three hours to decide. He admitted guilt to possessing a knife in a public space.

While delivering the judgment on the fifth day of the week, judge Howard Crowson said that upon observing the victim, the defendant “identified him as a target and drew him to within your reach to assault before taking his life”. He said Franco’s claim to have noticed a knife in the victim's belt was “a lie”.

He said of Ahmad that “it is a testament to the medical personnel attempting to rescue him and his will to live he even made it to the hospital alive, but in truth his injuries were lethal”.

Family Impact and Statement

Reciting a declaration written by Ahmad’s uncle Ghazwan Al Ibrahim, with input from his parents, the prosecutor told the judges that the teenager’s father had experienced cardiac arrest upon learning of the incident of his child's passing, necessitating medical intervention.

“I am unable to describe the impact of their terrible act and the effect it had over everyone,” the message read. “The boy's mom still sobs over his clothes as they remind her of him.”

He, who said his nephew was as close as a child and he felt guilty he could not protect him, went on to state that Ahmad had thought he had found “the land of peace and the fulfilment of dreams” in the UK, but instead was “brutally snatched by the senseless and unprovoked act”.

“Being his relative, I will always carry the guilt that Ahmad had arrived in Britain, and I could not keep him safe,” he said in a declaration after the judgment. “Ahmad we love you, we miss you and we will continue always.”

History of the Teenager

The proceedings heard the teenager had travelled for 90 days to get to England from his home country, visiting a refugee centre for young people in a city in Wales and going to school in the local college before arriving in his final destination. The teenager had aspired to be a medical professional, motivated partly by a hope to look after his mother, who was affected by a persistent condition.