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A man has been sentenced to life with a lowest sentence of 23 years for the murder of a young Syrian refugee after the boy passed his girlfriend in the center of Huddersfield.

Trial Hears Details of Deadly Altercation

A Leeds courtroom was told how Alfie Franco, twenty, attacked with a knife Ahmad Al Ibrahim, sixteen, shortly after the teenager walked by Franco’s girlfriend. He was declared guilty of the killing on last Thursday.

The teenager, who had fled battle-scarred the city of Homs after being wounded in a explosion, had been staying in the West Yorkshire town for only a short period when he crossed paths with his attacker, who had been for a jobcentre appointment that day and was going to buy beauty product with his girlfriend.

Details of the Incident

The trial was informed that Franco – who had taken cannabis, cocaine, a prescription medication, ketamine and codeine – took “a minor offense” to the teenager “without malice” passing by his girlfriend in the public space.

Security camera video displayed Franco saying something to the victim, and calling him over after a brief exchange. As Ahmad came closer, the individual opened the blade on a switchblade he was carrying in his pants and plunged it into the teenager's throat.

Verdict and Judgment

The defendant denied murder, but was convicted by a trial jury who took a little more than three hours to decide. He admitted guilt to having a knife in a public area.

While handing Franco his sentence on last Friday, judge Howard Crowson said that upon seeing Ahmad, Franco “singled him out and drew him to within your range to attack before taking his life”. He said the defendant's assertion to have spotted a blade in the victim's belt was “untrue”.

The judge said of the teenager that “it stands as proof to the doctors and nurses trying to save his life and his determination to live he even made it to the hospital alive, but in reality his injuries were unsurvivable”.

Family Reaction and Message

Reading out a declaration written by the victim's uncle the family member, with help from his family, the legal representative told the trial that the teenager’s father had had a heart episode upon hearing the news of his child's passing, leading to an operation.

“I am unable to describe the impact of their terrible act and the impact it had over everyone,” the message stated. “His mother still cries over his belongings as they smell of him.”

The uncle, who said Ahmad was like a son and he felt guilty he could not protect him, went on to explain that Ahmad had thought he had found “a peaceful country and the realization of hopes” in England, but instead was “cruelly taken away by the pointless and random violence”.

“As Ahmad’s uncle, I will always feel responsible that he had arrived in Britain, and I could not protect him,” he said in a message after the sentencing. “Ahmad we love you, we long for you and we will feel this way eternally.”

History of the Victim

The trial learned Ahmad had travelled for three months to arrive in Britain from Syria, staying at a shelter for teenagers in the Welsh city and attending college in the local college before moving to his final destination. The young man had aspired to be a medical professional, inspired partially by a hope to care for his mom, who was affected by a chronic medical issue.