Admin l Friday, January 20, 2017
WOODFORD, London – A teenager has been found guilty of murdering his school friend after stabbing him at a party in an attack that lasted just seconds.
The 17-year-old boy was convicted of the murder of 16-year-old Munashe Charles Kutyauripo – known as Charlie – today at the Old Bailey, Friday, 20 January. On Saturday, 9 January 2016, Charlie went to a sixteenth birthday party at a social club at Ashton Playing Fields, off Chigwell Road, Woodford.
He arrived at the party at about 20:50hrs with a group of friends. At about 21:33hrs the defendant turned up along with four other boys who had not been invited. Five minutes later Charlie and the defendant were outside the club together. Witnesses have reported some sort of altercation between the two.
CCTV footage captures the two boys walking back towards the social club. It showed Charlie walking behind the defendant
In the footage, the defendant suddenly spun round and lunged towards Charlie, stabbing him once in the heart and once in the shoulder with a kitchen knife.
Charlie staggered back towards the party, chased by the defendant who was still brandishing the knife. Once Charlie had collapsed outside, the defendant ran off through Woodford and went to a friend’s house 10 minutes from the scene.
People from the party rushed to help Charlie. At about 21:40hrs, local officers responded to an emergency call to the social club. On arrival they found Charlie, lying on his back, severely injured. Officers started to give first aid before they were joined by paramedics. Charlie was rushed to hospital, but died about an hour later.
A post-mortem examination held on Monday, 11 January 2016 at Walthamstow Mortuary gave cause of death as a stab wound to the chest.
After the defendant fled the scene he stayed the night at a friend’s house in Woodford before fleeing. Detectives carried out a manhunt to trace him, including public appeals. He was arrested three weeks later, on 1 February, by officers from Kent Police who spotted him in Margate. He was transferred to London and charged with Charlie’s murder on 2 February.
Detectives believe that the two boys, who had previously attended the same school, had been good friends but had fallen out towards the end of 2015.
Detective Inspector Jamie Stevenson, from the Homicide and Major Crime Command, said: “In two seconds that night, a night that should have been full of celebration, Charlie’s life and future were taken from him and his family.
“They have been devastated by his murder, and have showed tremendous courage throughout this investigation and the prosecution case.
“The defendant made a number of choices that night, which have resulted in today’s guilty verdict. He chose to go to the party that night and he chose to go armed with a large kitchen knife. That shows he was looking for, or expecting trouble, and if and when that trouble came he would use his knife.
“At 17 years old he is now a convicted murderer, who has shown no remorse for taking Charlie’s life.
“He immediately went on the run to try and evade the police and still to date has not admitted murdering Charlie or explained why. In fact he has tried to blame Charlie, claiming he acted in self defence. I hope that today’s verdict can bring some answers to Charlie’s family.”
The 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, will be sentenced on Wednesday, 25 January.
Four others were also arrested during the course of this investigation. [A] and [B], both aged 17, were arrested on suspicion of murder at separate addresses in east London on 16 January, 2016. On 19 January 2016, two men both aged 18 – [C] and [D] were arrested on suspicion of murder.They were subsequently told they will face no further action.
