A 14-year-old boy has been sentenced to seven years after he pleaded guilty to three offences.
Cops say it was over a debt of £20.
The boy, who cannot be named because he is a minor, was sentenced on Monday 10th at St Albans Crown Court, after pleading guilty to grievous bodily harm with intent, having a knife in a public place and threatening another with the knife.
will serve five years at a Youth Detention Centre and a further two years on licence
Words were exchanged before the defendant dismounted his bike and approached the first victim, attempted to punch him before pulling a knife from his pocket. He brandished it towards the victim, who managed to grab the defendant’s hands and plead with him to stop before he left the scene.
Just half an hour later the defendant approached three people – one of which was the second victim aged 15 and the brother of the first victim. – in Jackmans Place.
The offender, again on his bike, began verbally abusing the group and pulled out a folding knife, threatening them with it, before stabbing the 15-year-old in the neck. He then got back on his bike and cycled away.
The wounded boy walked a short distance before collapsing and receiving first aid from a passer-by. He was then taken to hospital where he stayed for five days, before being readmitted when he suffered complications. He has since fully recovered from his injury. The offender was arrested three days later, on June 11.
Detective Constable Gary Larkman, from the North Herts Local Crime Unit, said: “This was an incident involving a group of people known to one another. The offender reacted aggressively over a debt of £20 owed to him, before choosing to use a knife to stab his victim. He then left the area without any concern for the victim’s welfare.
“This could have easily been a murder investigation, such was the severity of the victim’s injury, but thankfully he pulled through.
“I hope the sentence handed down today gives the offender a chance to reflect on his actions and realise that by carrying and using a knife, he has had a lasting negative impact on both the victim’s life and his own.”
Are you feeling pressurised to carry a knife?
If you find yourself involved in a gang and your friends carry knives, maybe you’re under pressure to do so as well. Your friends might tell you that you'll be respected or even feared for carrying a weapon. Maybe they say you'll need it for protection. But all it really does is put you and your friends in greater danger.
Perhaps there's more to it than that - maybe you feel threatened by your friends and feel you need to carry a weapon for your own protection. What could be happening is that you're being bullied into doing something you don't want to do.