Four teenagers jailed following fatal stabbing of Kennie Carter

Four teenagers from Greater Manchester have been sentenced for their involvement in the murder of 16-year-old Kennie Carter.

One 16-year-old was sentenced to detention in a young offenders' institution at his Majesty’s pleasure for a minimum of 16 years and 60 days, after being found guilty of murder. He had wielded the knife that delivered the fatal blow to Kennie in the heart.

Latif Ferguson, 18, was sentenced to five years' detention in a young offenders' institution and two other 16-year-olds were sentenced to four years' detention after all being found guilty of manslaughter for their involvement in his death, following a lengthy trial at Manchester Crown Court earlier this year.

Kennie was found lying face down on Thirlmere Avenue in Stretford shortly before 7pm on 22 January 2022.

His last words are believed to have been during a phone call to his brother, where he said: “Oh they’ve stabbed me in my heart bro.”

Police and paramedics attended the scene to assist, and Kennie was taken to Manchester Royal Infirmary.

Despite extensive treatment, Kennie could not be saved and was pronounced dead at 8.27pm that night.

The postmortem confirmed a single stab wound on the left side of his chest had caused damage to his left lung and passed through his heart.

The police investigation began, and various CCTV was seized from the area, which pieced together the lead up to Kennie’s death.

During the trial the prosecution was able to show that the murder was an act of revenge following two incidents on 21 January 2022 – the day before the deadly attack – between friends of Kennie and friends of the four teenagers, where one man was injured, and a bat or pole was also brandished.

The following day, the four convicted teenagers travelled together with others to Stretford by tram where they were seen stealing bicycles from a block of flats and heard to shout the phrase: “This is revenge.”

Kennie was present at the flats and on being informed of the group’s presence, he headed home. As he walked past the group on Moss Road, one of them was heard to shout: “You’re the one who had backed that pole innit.” Kennie was fatally stabbed shortly after.

Rebecca Macaulay-Addison, Specialist Prosecutor for CPS North West’s Complex Casework Unit, said: “Kennie Carter’s life was tragically cut short.

“At trial, we were able to show that Kennie was killed by a deliberate act carried out by a 16-year-old boy who had come to Trafford with a group, set on revenge. The jury by their verdict rejected the suggestion of self-defence.

“Although only one of the teenagers inflicted the fatal wound, the others encouraged that act by identifying and locating a target for revenge and by further chasing and being present in sufficient numbers which supported him.

“They all shared a common purpose of retaliation and an intention to cause harm. Following the stabbing, they all fled together, leaving as a group, as they had arrived. They made no attempt to stop the attack, showed no remorse after the stabbing and fled the scene, leaving Kennie to die.

“Nothing can bring Kennie back. I can only hope that Kennie’s family can begin to move forward, knowing those responsible for their unimaginable loss have been brought to justice.”

Building the joint enterprise case – in it together

If a person assists or encourages another to commit a murder, with intent to kill or cause serious harm, they can face prosecution for their involvement.

Prosecutors must prove to a jury beyond reasonable doubt that each defendant played a part and is therefore guilty of a crime.

They do this by using all available evidence to piece together each defendant’s role in a crime.

All four of the convicted defendants in this case ran away from the scene after Kennie had been stabbed. No one called for help. No one came to his aid. They were all seen on CCTV fleeing the scene.

The principal attacker – a 16-year-old boy that the jury convicted of murder – was seen on CCTV callously miming and re-enacting the stabbing motion he had just carried out on his victim. Others in the group also named him as the culprit.

No-one is ever charged simply because they were in the street or around or about an offence. But a person can be guilty of manslaughter as a secondary party if they act to encourage or assist the offence, with the intent that some harm will be inflicted.

By demonstrating the actions of the defendants over the course of the evening, the prosecution was able to convince the jury of their guilt.

The defendants travelled together to Stretford with a motive, they deliberately hunted out those involved in the altercation from the night before, they sought to cause disorder by stealing bikes from the area before declaring: “this is revenge”. They then together spotted and followed Kennie who was alone, as a group. They killed him as a group.