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A man has been given a life sentence with a minimum term of 23 years for the homicide of a teenage Syrian refugee after the victim walked by his girlfriend in the center of Huddersfield.

Court Hears Details of Fatal Confrontation

Leeds crown court learned how Alfie Franco, 20, stabbed the victim, 16, shortly after the teenager walked by Franco’s girlfriend. He was convicted of murder on the fourth day of the week.

Ahmad, who had left war-torn his Syrian hometown after being hurt in a explosion, had been living in the local community for only a couple of weeks when he met his attacker, who had been for a employment office visit that day and was planning to get cosmetic adhesive with his girlfriend.

Particulars of the Attack

Leeds crown court learned that the accused – who had taken cannabis, cocaine, a prescription medication, ketamine and codeine – took “a trivial issue” to the boy “harmlessly” walking past his partner in the road.

Security camera video revealed the defendant uttering words to the victim, and summoning him after a quick argument. As Ahmad came closer, Franco unfolded the knife on a switchblade he was holding in his clothing and drove it into the victim's neck.

Trial Outcome and Sentencing

Franco pleaded not guilty to murder, but was judged guilty by a panel of jurors who deliberated for just over three hours. He pleaded guilty to possessing a knife in a public area.

While delivering the judgment on last Friday, the court judge said that upon seeing Ahmad, the defendant “identified him as a target and drew him to within your reach to assault before ending his life”. He said the defendant's assertion to have seen a weapon in Ahmad’s waistband was “a lie”.

The judge said of the victim that “it is a testament to the doctors and nurses working to keep him alive and his desire to survive he even arrived at the hospital breathing, but in truth his trauma were fatal”.

Family Reaction and Statement

Reciting a statement drafted by the victim's uncle the family member, with input from his parents, Richard Wright KC told the trial that the boy's dad had suffered a heart attack upon being informed of his child's passing, causing him to require surgery.

“I am unable to describe the effect of their terrible act and the impact it had over the whole family,” the message stated. “The victim's mother still weeps over his belongings as they smell of him.”

Ghazwan, who said Ahmad was like a son and he felt guilty he could not protect him, went on to state that Ahmad had thought he had found “the land of peace and the fulfilment of dreams” in the UK, but instead was “cruelly taken away by the senseless and unprovoked act”.

“As Ahmad’s uncle, I will always bear the shame that the boy had arrived in Britain, and I could not keep him safe,” he said in a statement after the verdict. “Our beloved boy we love you, we yearn for you and we will continue always.”

History of the Teenager

The trial learned Ahmad had journeyed for 90 days to get to England from the Middle East, staying at a refugee centre for youths in the Welsh city and studying in the Welsh city before relocating to his final destination. The young man had dreamed of becoming a medical professional, driven in part by a desire to care for his mom, who was affected by a chronic medical issue.