Sekou Doucoure: Rival postcode gang chased teen before stabbing him

Sekou Doucoure was stabbed on Nursery Road, Birmingham on 12 July 2022

A 16-year-old boy was fatally stabbed on a petrol station forecourt after being "chased down" by gang members involved in a postcode war.

Former Nottingham Forest academy player Sekou Doucoure was in Villa Street in Birmingham with a friend last July when he encountered his killers.

He fled and hid but was stabbed in a scuffle, and died at the scene.

Pierre Thomas, 18, from Birmingham, and a 16-year-old boy were cleared of murder, but convicted of manslaughter.

Det Insp Laura Harrison from West Midlands Police said Sekou was associated with a gang and both defendants were associated with gang related activity in the area.

"Unfortunately Sekou went into the area that relates to a different postcode to where he lives and I do believe it was a big factor in why he was killed," she said.

He was riding an electric scooter along Villa Street in Newtown at about 18:00 BST on 12 July when Thomas spotted him and his friend and pointed at them.

'Another statistic'

As Sekou went to ride towards him, Thomas pulled a gun from his bag as his 16-year-old co-defendant, who cannot be named because of his age, joined him along with another man, both armed with a knife and a gun.

Sekou, who was carrying a knife, fled as he was shot at, but managed to hide for about 20 minutes, police said.

As he made his way to Burbury Street, a fourth man who had joined the chase using Thomas' mountain bike, caught up with him and the pair became involved in a fight on the petrol station forecourt.

Sekou was stabbed in the chest and although police responding to the shots that had been fired attempted to resuscitate him, he died at the scene on Nursery Road.

Pierre Thomas pointed out Sekou Doucoure before he was chased down, police said

CCTV helped detectives identify suspects and warrants were conducted at the homes of Thomas and the 16-year-old, leading to them being charged over the death.

At Coventry Crown Court on Wednesday, the pair were found not guilty of murder but convicted of manslaughter.

Both were also found guilty of possessing of an imitation firearm.

Officers said they still wanted to trace Ishmael Farquharson in connection with the killing and a £10,000 Crimestoppers reward leading to his arrest was still in place.

Det Insp Harrison said the investigation remained active and appealed for anyone with information to come forward.

"Sadly Sekou has become another statistic of too many young boys killed as a result of gang affiliation," she added.

"It's heart-breaking to see young lives to be cut short in such a brutal way."

Det Insp Laura Harrison said Sekou was shot at as he was chased in Newtown before ultimately suffering a fatal stab injury

The teenager's family paid tribute to him on Wednesday saying he was a "good boy who would do anything for anyone" and was "sorely missed" by all the family.

"Sekou was a 16-year-old boy who loved his family and loved football.

"He gave a different perspective on life and inspired people around him to be the best they can be and to follow whatever religion they wanted."

They added that despite his shortcomings, people close to him knew he would help anyone no matter what the issue was.

"Words cannot truly express what kind of person he was," they said.

Thomas and his co-defendant will be sentenced at the same court on 10 March.