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A individual has been sentenced to life with a lowest sentence of 23 years for the killing of a young Syrian refugee after the teenager passed his partner in the center of Huddersfield.

Trial Learns Particulars of Fatal Altercation

The court in Leeds was told how the accused, twenty, attacked with a knife the victim, aged 16, not long after the boy walked by the defendant's partner. He was found guilty of the killing on the fourth day of the week.

The victim, who had fled war-torn the city of Homs after being wounded in a bombing, had been living in the local community for only a couple of weeks when he encountered his attacker, who had been for a jobcentre appointment that day and was planning to get beauty product with his girlfriend.

Details of the Assault

The court was informed that the defendant – who had taken cannabis, cocaine, a prescription medication, ketamine and codeine – took “a minor offense” to Ahmad “innocuously” going past his girlfriend in the public space.

Surveillance tape revealed the defendant making a remark to the victim, and summoning him after a quick argument. As the boy came closer, Franco opened the blade on a flick knife he was concealing in his trousers and plunged it into the teenager's throat.

Verdict and Sentencing

The accused refuted the murder charge, but was judged guilty by a jury who took a little more than three hours to decide. He admitted guilt to possessing a knife in a public place.

While sentencing the defendant on Friday, judge Howard Crowson said that upon spotting the teenager, the defendant “marked him as a victim and drew him to within your reach to strike before killing him”. He said his statement to have spotted a blade in the victim's belt was “untrue”.

He said of the teenager that “it is a testament to the medical personnel attempting to rescue him and his will to live he even reached the hospital with signs of life, but in truth his wounds were fatal”.

Relatives Impact and Message

Reciting a declaration written by his relative Ghazwan Al Ibrahim, with help from his family, the prosecutor told the judges that the boy's dad had experienced cardiac arrest upon being informed of his son’s death, causing him to require surgery.

“I am unable to describe the impact of their heinous crime and the effect it had over the whole family,” the testimony stated. “The boy's mom still sobs over his garments as they carry his scent.”

The uncle, who said the boy was like a son and he felt ashamed he could not shield him, went on to state that the victim had thought he had found “the land of peace and the fulfilment of dreams” in the UK, but instead was “tragically removed by the pointless and random violence”.

“Being his relative, I will always carry the guilt that Ahmad had come to the UK, and I could not protect him,” he said in a message after the verdict. “Dear Ahmad we love you, we long for you and we will feel this way eternally.”

Background of the Teenager

The proceedings was told the victim had journeyed for 90 days to get to England from the Middle East, visiting a refugee centre for youths in Swansea and going to school in the Welsh city before moving to his final destination. The teenager had hoped to work as a doctor, inspired partially by a desire to support his parent, who suffered from a long-term health problem.