Boy accused of murder tells court he only intended to ‘scare’ victim with knife

A youth accused of murdering a teenager has told a court he felt “regretful and upset” when he learned the victim had died and said he never intended to injure or kill anyone, despite admitting he carried a knife for protection.

The boy, 15, is on trial at Coventry Crown Court alongside his friend, also 15.

Both are accused of murdering Muhammad Hassam Ali, known as Ali, in Birmingham on January 20.

Ali, 17, died in hospital hours after he and his friend were allegedly followed through the city centre by two masked males they did not know, before he was stabbed in the chest as they sat in Victoria Square.

Giving evidence on Monday, the youth accused of carrying out the fatal attack said he only pulled out the knife to “scare” Ali and his friend, and did not intend to seriously harm or kill anyone.

He told his barrister, Michael Ivers KC, that he carried a knife for protection when he went to busy areas like Birmingham city centre, having previously been assaulted with weapons, and also regularly wore a Covid-style blue mask so people did not recognise him.

The youth told the court he had seen a photograph of someone that may have been Ali, with another person who he believed had previously attacked his cousin, and he said he only intended to speak to Ali about the incident, when he saw him on January 20.

The jury of six women and six men heard earlier in the trial that two youths approached Ali and his friend “out of nowhere” as they sat in Victoria Square, and started asking them 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, Ali allegedly told them: “Bro, I don’t know what you’re talking about, you’re pissing me off”, which prompted one of the youths to pull out a large knife and stab him in the chest, before they both fled the scene.

In his evidence, the defendant said he was asking Ali and his friend where they were from to see if it could be the same person he saw in the photograph, but said they became “aggressive” towards him.

As he was shown CCTV of their interaction, the defendant was asked by Mr Ivers why he kept putting his hand down to his right side.

He said: “I thought they were going to do something so I was trying to frighten them, to let them know I had something on me.

“I just wanted to frighten them, I didn’t want to do anything with [the knife]. I don’t remember what they were saying, but it was like ‘f*** off’ or ‘piss off’. They were getting more aggressive.”

When asked by Mr Ivers why he did not walk away, the defendant said: “If I turned my back, something might have happened to me, they might have assaulted me.

“It was more and more aggressive, Ali was saying he was going to do something.

“I have been attacked before in my life, I don’t want to get assaulted again. I was scared.”

Describing the moment Ali was stabbed, he said: “I have had times in the past when people have pulled things out on me and I never expected it.

“When I pulled [the knife] out I had it by my side, they were getting more and more aggressive in their speaking and movement.

“I put [the knife] in front of me, [Ali] leaned back and I thought he was going to do something to me and the knife went into him.”

He said he did not realise Ali had been stabbed until he looked back as he ran up the steps in Victoria Square and saw Ali’s friend holding the victim’s chest.

He said he ran because he was “panicking” and learnt Ali had died when he saw it on the news the next day, having burnt the clothes he had been wearing and disposed of the knife.

When asked by Mr Ivers if he accepted he had killed Ali, the defendant replied: “Yes.”

Mr Ivers asked the defendant how he felt that he had killed somebody, to which the defendant replied: “I feel regretful and upset.”

Neither of the defendants, who deny murder and possession of a knife, or Ali’s friend, can be named because of a court order because of their age.

The trial continues.