St Albans Verulamium Park stabbing: Teenager guilty of GBH

Police said the attacks happened after the offenders encountered a large group of boys and girls celebrating the end of their exams in Verulamium Park

A 15-year-old who stabbed a teenager who was celebrating the end of GCSEs has been found guilty of grievous bodily harm.

The boy, who cannot be named because he was aged 14 at the time, attacked the 16-year-old with a 10-inch knife in St Albans' Verulamium Park in June.

He was also found guilty of possession of a knife and actual bodily harm, but cleared of attempted murder.

Hertfordshire Constabulary said it was "sheer luck" the victim did not die.

The offender has been remanded into custody and will be sentenced at St Albans Crown Court next month.

'Completely unprovoked'

During the attack, on 15 June, the boy - who is now 15 years old - and a friend, 15, also knocked the victim's cousin unconscious.

The friend has since been found guilty of actual bodily harm and will be sentenced on the same day. The jury found a third teenager, 16, not guilty of actual bodily harm.

After the stabbing, the victim, from London Colney, was airlifted to hospital for emergency surgery to repair his gallbladder and stomach. He also suffered a laceration to his scalp.

Hertfordshire Police said the attacks happened after the offenders encountered a large group of boys and girls who were celebrating the end of their GCSE exams.

PC Jody Perrin said the attacks were "completely unprovoked" and the defendants went to the park that day "looking for trouble".

"It is only by sheer luck that the young stab victim in this case was not killed," she said.