Teenage gang members guilty of 14-year-old's sword murder » Communities » 24dash.com

Five teenage gang members were today found guilty of killing 14-year-old Paul Erhahon in an unprovoked attack.

Three boys were convicted of murder and two of manslaughter following a three-month Old Bailey trial.

Paul was stabbed in the heart with a 7in sword after being set upon by a 17-strong group in the foyer of a block of flats in Leytonstone, east London.

Members of the group as young as 13 were urged on by others, who were themselves only a few years older.

The "youngers" of the gang were encouraged to kill in order to "earn their spurs", the Old Bailey heard.

Many wore hoods and masks, and were armed with baseball bats, knives, swords and a bicycle chain when they attacked Paul on Good Friday last April.

Paul was heard to say "you can't be shanking (stabbing) me" but one of the gang members called out: "Go on youngers".

Detective Inspector Mick Foote, who led the investigation, said teenagers on the estate were subjected to an atmosphere of "intimidation and violence" by gang members and Paul may have been seen as having disrespected them.

"He has obviously decided to stand his ground and unfortunately the consequences are very grave," he said.

It was one of a series of murders involving teenagers last year which led Prime Minister Tony Blair to urge black communities to speak out against gang culture.

Paul was one of three of the victims who went to Kingsford Community School in Beckton. The others were 17-year-old Stephen Boachie and Adam Regis, 15.

The year before, Paul had been stabbed by bullies and his parents Paul and Rita had moved him to Kingsford, hoping for a fresh start for him.

But instead they came out of their home on the evening of the attack to find his chest covered in blood as he cried out: "I'm dying, I'm dying."

He had tried to run home and was just yards away when he collapsed, and was cradled by his parents as he lay fatally injured. He died in hospital less than half an hour after the attack.

Paul's 15-year-old friend, who cannot be named because of his age, was also stabbed and left for dead after he vainly tried to come to his rescue.

The boy, who later recovered, has told how he saw the look of terror in Paul's eyes as he tried to flee.

Detectives could not establish a clear motive for the "senseless" attack, but others believed it was to do with music. Paul was an aspiring DJ.

His friend said: "It was all the tunes and that."

Video recordings of news broadcasts about the murder were found on a mobile phone in the bedroom of one of the defendants.

Laughter and the words "bang bang" could be heard in the background.

Sentencing was adjourned until May 9.

The boys found guilty of murder were aged 14, 15 and 16. A 16-year-old and a 19-year-old were convicted of manslaughter.

The 14- and 16-year-old convicted of murder were also convicted of the attempted murder of Paul's friend, as was the 19-year-old and another youth aged 18.

The 16-year-old found guilty of Paul's manslaughter was also convicted of wounding with intent for the attack on the friend.

A 14-year-old boy was cleared of all charges in relation to both victims.

Paul and his friend were not expecting to run into any trouble when they went out that evening and the attack on them was unprovoked.

They were initially confronted by four boys carrying baseball bats, and eventually around 13 others joined the group.

Paul was beckoned over by one of the gang, his friend said.

"He was, like, 'no, I don't want to come there' and then he (the other boy) was like, 'if you don't come here, then I'll come to you'.

"They pushed Paul into the corner, there was punching.

"I went to go and help my friend Paul. That's when he escaped and that's when they came to me.

"First of all I was talking and they weren't hearing me, so I pulled people off. I was saying 'allow it please', stop doing it.

"I don't know why - I must have pulled off someone - that is when Paul went away, that is when they came to me."

The friend said he tried to move but the gang gathered round him.

"I got hit in the head but I don't know who it was," he said. "Four of them pulled out knives and started stabbing me.

"After that, I dropped to the floor and then it all went into another angle, I don't know where I was going."

The boy said after the gang left him, he saw the "leader" going "in the direction of Paul".

"He was scared," said Paul's friend. "He ran and I saw his face - he was scared."

One of the gang members, aged 15 at the time, had urged on others, two aged 13 and one 14, to carry out the stabbing, saying: "Go on youngers." Three older boys who had been in a Dixie Chicken shop nearby joined in the attack.

Jonathan Turner QC, prosecuting, told jurors: "Such gangs, mainly comprised of upper-teenagers or young men in their early 20s, often have younger acolytes who look up to them and earn their spurs by doing the bidding of their elders.

"These are the 'youngers'. They can be as young as 12 or 13 and this gang was no different."

Mr Turner said not a single person, whether a witness or a defendant, had suggested that the two victims provoked what happened or that the attack was gang-related in the sense of two different groups fighting by consent.

He said jurors may struggle to find a convincing reason for the attack, describing it as a "senseless" act of gratuitous violence.

Mr Turner said Paul and the 15-year-old were unarmed and had come together that evening "not by arrangement but by chance".

"They were expecting absolutely nothing and were completely taken off guard by what happened," he said.

After the murder, members of the gang went off calmly to a nearby park where they discussed what had happened "amidst joking and laughter".

All the boys had street "tag names" and Paul himself was known was "Hell Raiser".

Following the murder last year his aunt, Jackie Mustapha, revealed that her nephew had previously been stabbed in a "personal quarrel" and his parents were hoping that he could make a fresh start.

"That was why his parents moved him to a new school, to stop him from being bullied," she said.

Paul moved to Kingsford Community School - the same school as 15-year-old Adam Regis, nephew of athlete John Regis, who was stabbed to death the previous month.

A-level student Stephen Boachie, 17, who was killed in January the same year, also attended the school.

In a speech just days after Paul's killing, Tony Blair said: "The black community - the vast majority of whom in these communities are decent, law-abiding people horrified at what is happening - need to be mobilised in denunciation of this gang culture that is killing innocent young black kids."

Paul's mother was said to be distraught following the end of the trial.

Mr Foote said both parents were pleased with the verdict but still felt a sense of "loss and emptiness" since he died.

He read out a statement on their behalf saying: "Paul was a loving son who had a contagious smile and a laugh that went with it."

His 16th birthday would have been on May 28 but now the family can no longer celebrate the date, or hope for the day when he would marry or have children.

Mr Foote added: "After Paul was stabbed he tried to make it home, where he would have been safe and secure, and be with his family.

"But Paul knew he was dying and was not going to make it. Paul's mother found him lying in a pool of blood in a neighbouring street a few yards from home.

"His mother gave him first aid but feeling helpless she cradled him in her arms."

The detective said police were "pleased" with the verdict.

He added: "Our hearts go out to the Erhahon family for their tragic loss and we hope that this verdict provides some comfort.

"This was a senseless attack of gratuitous violence. This predatory gang were armed and ready to attack anyone."