Teenager found guilty of baseball bat killing
Karim Meskine, 19, was the victim of ‘violent and senseless crime’
Local police are hailing a seconddegree murder conviction in the beating death of a 19-year-old man near a SkyTrain station nearly three years ago.
“This was an extremely tragic case that shocked the community on a number of levels,” said Staff Sgt. Jennifer Pound of the RCMP’s Integrated Homicide Investigation Team. “This second-degree murder conviction is confirmation that, despite one’s age, those who believe it is their right to callously take a life will be held responsible for their actions.”
Karim Meskine was attacked near the New Westminster SkyTrain station on Dec. 17, 2013, and a 16-year-old was arrested and initially charged with aggravated assault and assault with a weapon.
The charges were subsequently raised to second-degree murder after Meskine succumbed to his injuries, and the teen was convicted of that charge on Thursday.
“This was a violent and senseless crime and our hope is that this conviction will help the friends and family of Mr. Meskine move forward in their healing process,” added Chief Const. Dave Jones of the New Westminster Police.
Meskine’s killer — who cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act because he was 16 years old at the time of the offence — will return to court next Thursday.
During the trial, the Crown said that a few days before the attack, the killer and three friends planned to find someone who was trying to sell a smartphone online, lure them to an isolated area near the 22nd Street SkyTrain station, and then rob them.
They found their target, and arranged to meet him.
However, as the teens waited on a path near the station on the day of the meeting, the target became suspicious and didn’t show up. One teen left, but the other three remained.
Meskine, who, according to court testimony, was not the initial target, happened to walk down the pedestrian path a short time later and was attacked.
The Crown said Meskine was hit with a bat multiple times and then the three boys ran from the scene.
A passerby found Meskine, who was taken to hospital and spent the next three days in a coma before being removed from life support.
About an hour after the assault, the teen called 911, turned himself in, and was arrested.
This was an extremely tragic case that shocked the community on a number of levels.