Boy saved by Philip Lawrence is jailed

The schoolboy being protected by Philip Lawrence when the London headmaster was stabbed to death was convicted of carrying a loaded firearm yesterday.

William Njoh, 21, faces a prison sentence for having a Browning .22 pistol at the Notting Hill Carnival last year.

Njoh was 13 in 1995 when Mr Lawrence was murdered outside the gates of St George's Roman Catholic School in Maida Vale, west London, while trying to shield the pupil from an attack by a gang of youths. The death provoked a national debate on youth violence and school security, and led to new laws on carrying knives.

Mr Lawrence's widow, Frances, who has four children, was in court to hear the outcome of the trial yesterday. She said outside court that she felt sorry for Njoh, who was moved with his family to another part of London for fear of reprisals from the knife gang when he was 14.

The jury at the Old Bailey was told of the murder, but the headmaster's name was not disclosed during the trial. After Njoh was convicted it was revealed that since the murder he had gone on to lead a life of crime, including carrying a bladed weapon. When he was 17 he was convicted of robbery and sentenced to two years in a youth jail. Later he was put on probation for burglary, possession of cannabis and carrying a blade. He has a further conviction for cannabis possession in December 2001 and received a community rehabilitation order.

The Old Bailey trial heard claims that Njoh's life had been blighted by the stabbing, in which he was injured, and the consequences of giving evidence against the gang leader, Learco Chindamo, 16, who was convicted of murder and detained at a youth jail.

Njoh, who had denied the charge, was remanded in custody until next month for pre-sentence reports.