Hazrat Umar murder: Killer jailed for 'Rambo-knife' stabbing

A boy who killed a fellow student with a "Rambo-style" knife after his mobile phone was taken has been jailed.

Adam Muhammad, 17, stabbed 18-year-old Hazrat Umar 15 times in the "frenzied and unprovoked" ambush in Bordesley Green, Birmingham, on 25 February.

Muhammad "held a grudge" after Mr Umar "insulted and slapped him" and briefly took his phone, the court heard.

The 17-year-old admitted murder and was sentenced to life, with a minimum term of 14 years and three months.

He had initially denied the charge but changed his plea on the fourth day of his trial at Birmingham Crown Court.

Muhammed was supposed to be sitting an exam but turned up late and failed to return at 14:00 GMT - about the time he was attacking Mr Umar.

Sentencing, Judge Francis Laird QC said the defendant had "sought revenge" against his classmate at South and City College Birmingham.

"I am sure that from the moment [the defendant] left college that afternoon he planned to carry out an attack on Mr Umar with the knife once they were relatively secluded," he said.

Muhammad was named as Mr Umar's killer after reporting restrictions were lifted following an application by the BBC.

Det Insp Michelle Allen, from West Midlands Police, said after the stabbing Muhammad stamped on Mr Umar before he "calmly picked up the knife and walked away".

"I don't believe he stood a chance."

Police believe Muhammad changed his plea "because of the strength of the case against him".

More than one hundred people have been fatally stabbed in the UK so far this year. The motives and circumstances behind killings have varied - as have the age and gender of the victims.

Mr Umar was a relative of former chief prosecutor for North West England Nazir Afzal who Tweeted on Wednesday: "He had everything to live for and nothing to die for."

He was the third teenager to be stabbed to death in Birmingham in 12 days earlier this year.

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