Chilling moment teen killer shows off knife after stabbing Harvey Willgoose

A ‘knife-obsessed’ 15-year-old schoolboy was found guilty of murder after Harvey Willgoose was stabbed earlier this year at All Saints Catholic High School in Sheffield

The disturbing moment a teenage schoolboy was caught brandishing a knife on CCTV seconds after fatally stabbing a fellow pupil has been released.

Harvey Willgoose, 15, died after being stabbed at All Saints Catholic High School in Sheffield on February 3. The accused, also 15 but who can’t be named for legal reasons, was today found guilty of his murder.

The defendant had already admitted manslaughter but denied murder. He said that he “lost control” and did not remember twice stabbing Harvey. The victim was in the schoolyard at lunch when he was fatally wounded at 12:15pm by a 13cm hunting knife that cut through five ribs and punctured his heart.

In the chilling footage released by police, both boys are seen arriving at the school in the morning of the killing. The pair, who had fallen out on social media, are then seen alone together in the school corridor.

The defendant (with a green dot above his head) begins to push Harvey around, who keeps his hands behind his back. The defendant had warned Harvey in a private message on Snapchat that morning: “If u wan beef we can hav it”.

His attacker is then seen “dancing” and “bouncing on his toes” in the school cafeteria seconds after he had killed the teen. A teacher appears with her arms raised up trying to calm the defendant down.

In the aftermath of the horrific incident, the killer confessed to his teachers: “I’m not right in the head. My mum doesn’t look after me right. I’ve stabbed him.”

The teens had taken opposing sides in a conflict between two other pupils, which led to the school being put into lockdown on January 29 following allegations of a weapon on the premises. Harvey, who wasn’t at school that day, texted his dad saying: “This is why I don’t go to school dad, people have knives.”

The defendant was described as having an “unhealthy interest in weapons”, even talking about “shanking” someone when he was just 13. He had previously posed with a knife at school and was seen with an axe on another occasion. The jury was told that he bragged to another student about having “loads of knives,” a claim he denied.

However, he admitted to buying knives online using his parents’ credit card, including an Assassin’s Creed knife and the “scary” hunting knife that he killed Harvey’s with. Prosecutor Richard Thyne KC told the jury that the assault on Harvey was an instance of “purposeful aggression” and an “act of retribution”, following a disagreement involving two other students where the boys had taken opposing sides.

Mr Thyne said the defendant had also looked into rage rooms and, just over a week prior to the fatal stabbing, searched for “waiting for someone to swing so I can let out my anger”.

The trial also heard testimony from another student who said Harvey told him the defendant had been behaving as if he had a knife under his jumper that morning, but the victim believed he was bluffing.

Defence counsel Gul Nawaz Hussain KC argued that the defendant “snapped” after enduring years of bullying and “an intense period of fear at school”.

He told the jury: “Tragically, Harvey was a combination of being the final straw that broke (the defendant) and the unintended face of a series of threats of violence and bullying he had suffered in recent months.”

Mr Hussain argued: “We say he suffered a loss of control which resulted in horrific and tragic consequences.

He also expressed concern about the broader societal implications of young people carrying knives, stating: “It is a frightening state of affairs that boys and young men think the way to stay safe is by carrying a knife. It’s like a nuclear arms race, and all that happens is the likelihood of them being used increases.”

Addressing the jurors, Mr Hussain emphasised that acquitting his client of murder would not diminish the tragedy of Harvey’s death, saying: “It doesn’t mean Harvey’s death is any less tragic or pointless”.

Mr Thyne said this was echoed in the defendant’s behaviour on the day he stabbed Harvey, and showed CCTV clips from the school which he said showed him trying to provoke Harvey, who remained “A loved son has lost his life, a family have been deprived of him.”

Steve Davies, CEO of St Clare Catholic Multi Academy Trust which runs All Saints Catholic High School, said: ‘We think especially of Harvey’s family, loved ones and friends today. We cannot begin to imagine the immeasurable impact the loss of Harvey has had on them.

“Harvey was a much-loved, positive and outgoing pupil whose memory will be cherished by all who knew him. As a community we have been devastated by his death and we continue to think of him every day.”

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