Teenager jailed for life over ambush murder

A teenager who travelled more than 150 miles from Leeds to London to stab a man has been jailed for at least 25 years for his murder.

Sulaiman Tajzai, 18, ambushed shop worker Farmanullah Sherzad outside the 26-year-old's home in Westminster on 27 March, stabbing him at least 10 times.

Sentencing him at the Old Bailey to a life term, Judge Angela Rafferty KC said he had held a grudge against Sherzad "based on a false suggestion of misconduct" and had been "effectively stalking him down like prey".

Describing the attack as "exceptionally violent", she told Tajzai: "It is not said on your behalf, nor could it be, that you had any justifiable or excusable grievance against this man."

The court heard that Tajzai, an Afghan asylum seeker, wrongly believed Sherzad belonged to the Taliban, which had kidnapped his father and was suspected of killing him.

The court was also told Sherzad had been arrested in Leeds in October over an allegation involving a woman known to Tajzai. He told officers he had been invited to the address and was in a relationship with her, and police later said no further action would be taken.

In January, Tajzai travelled to London and carried out reconnaissance near Sherzad's Abbey Orchard Street home and his workplace, the court heard.

On 27 March he armed himself with a kitchen knife and took a train south, arriving at King's Cross station in a face mask, distinctive jacket and dark gloves.

CCTV tracked him across the capital to Abbey Orchard Street, where he waited for Sherzad to cycle home from work at about 22:00 GMT.

Prosecutor Lisa Wilding KC said Tajzai had given his age as 14 when he arrived in the UK in August 2022 and claimed asylum the following year.

In mitigation for her client, who admitted murder and possessing a knife, Frida Hussain KC said he had post-traumatic stress disorder after exposure to violence in his village and the deaths of relatives.

Sherzad's family described him as "kind, gentle and free-spirited", a keen cricketer who often worked six or seven days a week. In a statement, they said they were "deeply shocked and angered by the circumstances surrounding his death".

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