Family of murdered schoolboy confront ‘laughing’ killers in court

Kennie Carter was stabbed to death while walking home on January 22, 2022.

The 16-year-old’s killers have now been locked up after fatally wounding the schoolboy in a revenge killing, the Manchester Evening News reports.

Boy A, the 16-year-old killer who stabbed Kennie, was sentenced to life in prison and will have to serve at least 17 years in prison. Three others, Latif Ferguson, 18, Boy G and Boy H, both 16, were convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to prison terms.

Kennie’s mother, Joan, said no punishment would “ever be enough.” She said she saw the “person responsible” for Kennie’s death “laughing and smirking” throughout a court hearing. Joan and other family members turned their chairs to watch the defendants during the hearing.

“It shows me that he had absolutely no remorse and it broke my heart even more,” she said in a statement read on her behalf. “No punishment or anything the court can award will ever be enough for me.”

“They took our Kennie away from his loving family and our lives are forever destroyed.” Kennie’s family members wore T-shirts with a picture of him and the words “RIP Kennie” in court.

“They stabbed me in the heart, my brother”

Kennie was brutally murdered as part of a revenge feud, Manchester Crown Court heard. Boy A was seen on CCTV minutes after “re-enacting” the killing, showing how he stabbed him.

Prosecutors said Kennie was killed as a “revenge” after an incident the previous day. Kennie’s friends were allegedly involved in an “altercation” with others connected to the defendants, during which a gun was allegedly produced.

The next day, January 22, 2022, the killers went to Stretford. A resident of a block of flats saw a large group, estimated at around 15 people, arriving after 5pm.

Three bikes were stolen from the communal entrance to the flats, and a witness heard a cry of vengeance. “In due course they had to abandon the bikes in Stretford,” prosecutor Jaime Hamilton KC told the trial. “The bikes were not the prize.”

Kennie became the “object of revenge” after he was spotted walking down the street. He was on the phone with his older brother moments before he was stabbed. Sonnie Carter could hear someone in the background of the call say: “You’re the one who propped up that pole, weren’t you?”

“No, no, it wasn’t me, brother,” Kennie was heard to reply. The reply was silent for a moment or two before Kennie said, “Oh, they stabbed me in the heart, brother.”

He was found lying in the street shortly afterwards as members of the public desperately tried to save him. A heartbreaking statement was read out on behalf of Kennie’s mother by his sister.

“My son was chased down the street and killed as he was walking home,” she said. “At the time of his death, he was only 16 years old.

“Over the past seven weeks, we have had to hear detailed accounts of what happened to our son. How can we put into words how much his death and the past two and a half years have affected us?

“It wasn’t just Kennie who died on January 22, 2022. Our entire family was destroyed by this senseless violence.”

During the trial, Boy A admitted to stabbing Kennie. He claimed he acted in self-defence after alleging Kennie had brandished a knife.

But the jury rejected his version of events and convicted him of murder. The judge said he was sure Boy A had brought a knife to the scene and used it to murder Kennie.

“A Deadly Revenge”

Sentencing, Judge Goose said: “This is another murder of a young person with a knife in a context of gang violence. Young men carrying knives in public, prepared to threaten and kill others, is becoming increasingly common in our cities.

“The tragedy is that it destroys not only the lives of the victims and their families, but also the lives of those who commit the offence.” Nine other young men have also been tried for murder and manslaughter.

Mr Hamilton said: “A person can be guilty as a secondary party if they share the intention of the principal offender and act to encourage or assist in the commission of the offence.” He alleged the nine were involved in various ways: “by searching for the people involved the night before, taking the bikes, declaring it was revenge, driving around the area in all directions and then spotting and following Kennie Carter.”

“Although Boy A wielded the knife, he did so for a common purpose,” he said. “The others participated by marauding, spotting Kennie, following him and supporting and encouraging one of them to take deadly revenge.”

Ferguson, Boy G and Boy H were found not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter. Six other teenagers were acquitted of murder and manslaughter.

The Manchester Evening News had asked for reporting restrictions granting anonymity to boys A, G and H because of their ages to be lifted after their conviction. But Mr Justice Goose ruled against the request and said the restrictions would remain in place.

The whole sentences :

• Boy A has been detained at Her Majesty’s pleasure for at least 17 years. The Parole Board will decide whether it is safe to release him after this period.
• Ferguson, of School Walk, Old Trafford, was sentenced to five years in custody.
• Boy G and Boy H were both sentenced to four years in prison.

After the hearing, Rebecca Macaulay-Addison, specialist prosecutor in the Complex Case Unit at CPS North West, said: “Kennie Carter’s life was tragically cut short. At trial we were able to show that Kennie was killed by a deliberate act by a 16-year-old boy who had come to Trafford with a group bent on revenge. The jury rejected the suggestion of self-defence in their verdict.

“Although only one of the teenagers inflicted the fatal wound, the others encouraged this act by identifying and locating a target for revenge and by continuing his pursuit and being present in sufficient numbers to support him.

“They all shared a common goal of retaliation and an intent to cause harm. After the stabbing, they all fled together, leaving as a group, as they had arrived. They made no attempt to stop the attack, showed no remorse after the stabbing and fled the scene, leaving Kennie to die.

“Nothing can bring Kennie back to life. I just hope that Kennie’s family can begin to move forward, knowing that those responsible for this unimaginable loss have been brought to justice.”

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