Preston murder: Two jailed for killing boy over £25 debt

The teenager's parents said they "will remain incomplete without Sarmad"

A man and a teenage boy who stabbed a 16-year-old to death with a knife and a machete over a £25 debt have been jailed for murder.

Sarmad Al-Saidi died days after being attacked in Preston in December 2020.

Jamie Dixon, 19, and Lemar Anthony Forbes, 17, had waited to receive a signal that Sarmad was unarmed and then went into a house and stabbed him.

Dixon was jailed for life with a minimum of 19 years, while Forbes was sentenced to a minimum of 15 years.

Asad Hussain, 17, was cleared of murder but found guilty of conspiracy to commit section 18 assault and jailed for five years at Preston Crown Court.

Dixon admitted murder, while Forbes was found guilty of the charge in July

Lancashire Police said Hussain tricked Sarmad into meeting him at the house in Chatham Place on 23 December to discuss a £25 debt, while Dixon and Forbes, who was 16 at the time of the murder, "skulked around the corner" waiting for a signal.

Hussain, who had a baseball bat, convinced Sarmad to put down his machete and then phoned the pair to tell them the boy was unarmed.

Dixon and Forbes put on balaclavas and went into the building before stabbing Sarmad with a knife and machete.

The pair then fled the scene while Hussain, of Thorn Street, Preston, remained, pretending not to know the identity of the attackers.

'Three heartless cowards'

A force spokesman said officers found Sarmad with multiple stab injuries to his chest and legs in the conservatory of the house.

Dixon later boasted to a friend over the phone that he had just "done" Sarmad and police found a video on Forbes's phone of him waving around his weapon and talking about how he "stabbed Sarmad up".

Forbes, of Skeffington Road in Preston, pleaded guilty to murder, while Dixon, of Clayton Avenue in Leyland, was unanimously found guilty of murder after a trial in July.

Sentencing all three, Judge Mr Justice Goss said it was a "tragic and troubling case", adding: "A family have a lost a loved and cherished son."

Hussain was cleared of murder but found guilty of conspiracy to commit section 18 assault

In a statement, Sarmad's parents said their son died at the hands of "three heartless cowards" in an "unprovoked attack".

"We will remain incomplete without Sarmad. His cheeky laughter will never again be heard in our home," they said.

"The sentences given today... will never reflect the pain and devastation with which we are living each day."

Det Ch Insp Lee Wilson said his "sincere hope" was that the case would act "as a warning and wake-up call to any youngsters involved in gangs and knife crime".

"The only positive which could ever come from this... is that hopefully teenage boys will think twice before arming themselves," he said.

"If you carry a knife, at some point you will end up using it."

Why not follow BBC North West on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to [e-mail]