Youngsters ‘are carrying knives like phones’

CHILDREN are carrying knives “like they are mobile phones”, a judge has warned, after he sentenced a gang for killing a teenager.

Liam Hunt, 17, was stabbed four times and left to die in a pool of blood in an alleyway after being attacked on February 14 last year.

He was kicked, punched and suffered a 2.7 inch-deep wound from being knifed in the neck opposite a primary school in Northampton, in a killing that the judge described as being “just short of an execution”.

The court previously heard that the victim had been in a fight with one of the defendants two days before the fatal attack.

After the stabbing, CCTV showed the gang running away through residential streets where they buried a knife in a planter, while other footage showed one of those involved re-enacting the attack in a Mcdonald’s restaurant.

Another mimicked the attack with a cutting gesture to his neck. Prosecutor John Lloyd-jones QC told the court: “Liam was 17 at the time when he was murdered. He was unarmed and accordingly he did not deserve to die. He was much loved by his family and friends.”

Last month, five men were convicted for their part in the youngster’s death at Northampton Crown Court. They were jailed this week for a total of 36 years.

Kane Allaban-hamilton, 18, of Northampton, was found guilty of murder and jailed for life with a minimum of 14 years. The other four men will serve lesser sentences for manslaughter.

The court heard Allaban hamilton stabbed Liam with such force his hand slipped on to the blade.

Judge Rupert Mayo said: “This case is about normal, immature boys who think it’s OK to carry a knife. This killing was just short of an execution. The jury was exposed to a culture where kids carry knives like they were mobile phones.”