Teenager locked up for murder of bike fan who named him with dying breath

Sanchez Tate, 18, claimed he had acted in self-defence but was found guilty of murder following a trial at the Old Bailey.

Mohamed Abdi Noor named his killer with his dying breath after he was stabbed in Kentish Town (Metropolitan Police/PA) (PA Media)

A teenager has been locked up for at least 22 years for fatally stabbing a motorbike enthusiast who named him in his dying breath.

Sanchez Tate, 18, had attacked 21-year-old neighbour, Mohamed Abdi Noor, after being blamed by him for knocking over his bike.

The defendant claimed he had acted in self-defence but was found guilty of murder following a trial at the Old Bailey.

On Thursday, Judge Mark Dennis KC ordered him to be detained at His Majesty’s pleasure for 22 years.

Tate was also handed a concurrent sentence of 15 months for possessing a blade in a public place.

Judge Dennis told him: “This was a dreadful and shocking act of violence using a weapon which you could have had no sensible justification to have possessed in the first place, let alone armed yourself with as you went out on the public streets on that fateful evening.

“In a matter of seconds you took away the life of a young man in an unjustified and utterly futile outburst of violence on your part.”

He noted the victim was just a few days from his 22nd birthday and had only recently got married.

He worked as a technician employed for TfL to repair bikes around London and was also studying biochemical engineering.

On the evening of the attack, Mr Adbi Noor had been cycling home from a local shop as Tate lay in wait with a long sword having borne a grudge over an incident involving the victim’s motorbike.

It has the hallmarks of targeted, if spontaneous, violence against a known individual, whatever lay behind it

Prosecutor Catherine Pattison

Tate was the aggressor from the start and stabbed Mr Abdi Noor in the chest during the incident last December 11 in Tufnell Park Road in Kentish Town, north London, where both men lived.

Emergency services were called to the scene as Tate ran off towards his home and was arrested soon after.

Prosecutor Catherine Pattison had said: “Before he lost consciousness, Mr Abdi Noor said, ‘Sanchez’ and repeated it – meaning the name of the person who had stabbed him.”

Married motorcycle enthusiast Mr Abdi Noor was taken to hospital where he died early the next morning.

Ms Pattison told jurors: “The level of violence was out of all proportion for what was needed to rob someone.

“It has the hallmarks of targeted, if spontaneous, violence against a known individual, whatever lay behind it.”

The court heard that Tate and Mr Abdi Noor knew each other because they lived in the same road but they were not friends.

Mr Abdi Noor had a “passion for pedal cycles and motorbikes” and told his wife of an earlier incident allegedly involving Tate.

Ms Pattison said he had gone to check his motorbike in his estate parking lot and found it on the ground.

He asked some teenagers who had knocked it over and they pointed to Tate.

The prosecutor said: “Mr Abdi Noor told Mr Tate that he needed to pay for the damage – a scratch and some parts were damaged.

“Nothing else appeared to come of it.

“As it happened, Mr Abdi Noor took his motorbike to be repaired.

“The damage to the motorbike was still being repaired on the date Mr Abdi Noor died.”

Detective Chief Inspector Larry Smith, who led the Scotland Yard investigation, said: “My thoughts are with Mohamed’s family and those who knew him, who have lost a dearly loved family member and friend.

“I am also mindful that there are no winners in this case and Tate, who was 17 years of age at the time, will have a good deal of time in prison to reflect on the callous stupidity of his actions.

“The investigation team would like to thank the witnesses to this shocking incident, who stepped in to try to stop it.

“They also alerted emergency services, assisted with first aid, made statements to police and gave crucial evidence at the trial.”