Solihull vape shop stab victim, 17, 'died after screaming for help'
A 17-year-old boy who was fatally stabbed in a Solihull vape shop was "crying and screaming for help" after bursting into the store, a trial has heard.Reuben Higgins had tried to stop his attackers getting into the shop before they overwhelmed the door, seconds before he he was stabbed and died at the scene in Marston Green, Birmingham Crown Court was told.Abdurrahman Summers, 18, from Yardley, is on trial with two 15-year-old boys who can't be named because of their age. All three deny murdering Reuben, on 29 October last year.The court previously heard a fourth suspect, who can't be named for legal reasons, is believed to have fled the country.
On Wednesday, the jury heard that on the day Reuben died the man working at the Vape Minimarket in Marston Green, was helping out the owner, a friend, as a favour.Giving evidence to the court from behind a screen, the witness said he didn't usually work there but was alone when a "confused and frightened" Reuben ran into the shop and closed the door behind him, just before 18:30 GMT.
He recalled that Reuben was lying down and "trying hard" to keep the door shut with his body, before three or four men began striking the shop's entrance and trying to get in."He was crying and screaming for help," the witness said of Reuben. "He was lying behind the door. He was pushing back. He didn't want the door to be opened."The man, who was speaking through a Sorani Kurdish interpreter, said a language barrier meant he didn't know exactly what was being said, but the group appeared to be shouting and swearing."They were very aggressive," he told the court.
'Bleeding on thigh'
The worker said he was "very afraid" and told the group to go away.But the attackers eventually overwhelmed the door, he said, before picking Reuben up by the back of his clothing and moving him to the corner of the shop to attack him."He seemed very afraid of the situation," the witness said."I think he was asking, 'Don't hit me'."The witness said he couldn't recall whether there were three or four men who attacked Reuben but added they all came into the shop, with nobody remaining outside.He explained the attack happened "very quickly" and he didn't see any weapons or objects.But he said he saw the men moving their hands in a stabbing motion with a closed fist, attacking Reuben until he fell to the floor."I saw he was bleeding on his thigh and then he was holding his chest as well by his hand," the witness said."He was shouting. He was screaming and he was in pain. It seems to me he was asking for help."
'Tallest man most aggressive'
The shopworker said the tallest attacker was most the aggressive during the assault, and came back into the shop shortly afterwards to look for a phone he had dropped during the attack.Various people from outside tried to come and help shortly after the fatal attack, he added, before ambulances and police arrived to help Reuben with his injuries.Talbir Singh KC, defending one of the 15-year-olds, questioned the store worker's memory.He suggested a bearded man, whom Reuben had been seen in the shop with earlier that day, was the main attacker rather than the tallest of the men."I'm going to suggest to you that the bearded man was making a thrusting motion," he said."The bearded man was the most aggressive man in that shop wasn't he?"The shopworker replied all of the men were doing a thrusting motion, including the bearded man."He was aggressive but the tallest one was the more aggressive one," the shop keeper replied.The trial continues.
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NBC News
5 days ago
- NBC News
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OULDER, Colo. — Once again, the war in Gaza has come home to America. A man using what police called a "makeshift flamethrower" launched a gruesome attack on demonstrators in Boulder on Sunday, raising questions about why security wasn't stronger in the wake of an earlier attack in Washington, D.C. Run for Their Lives, the organization behind the long-standing demonstration that advocated for the return of Israeli hostages, had anticipated that its members would have safety concerns. The group offered principles to make the events safer, including "don't protest," "be polite and peaceful" and "don't disturb your neighbors." "Focus on humanity," the guidance on its website says. "This is about innocent children, women, the elderly, and other civilians being held by terrorists—not about the war." The Boulder chapter of Run for Their Lives has been holding regular demonstrations demanding that Hamas release the hostages seized during the terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. 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Daily Mirror
29-05-2025
- Daily Mirror
Sad reason woman stole bus and went on 7-mile journey before spitting on cops
Shazma Ansar spat at three officers after stealing the bus and driving for seven miles, smashing into parked cars - a court heard she was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia A knife-wielding woman stole a bus from an airport and took it on a seven-mile journey which ended in a smash with parked cars for a tragic reason. Shazma Ansar, 29, used the blade to threaten driver Mark Lewis and demanded he take her to London from Birmingham shortly after midnight. He went to get police for support but found the bus had gone when he returned. But she was eventually arrested on St. Benedicts Road, Small Heath, after smashing into stationary cars and wedging the bus between vehicles when she was trying to turn around. In custody she also spat at three different officers. Birmingham Crown Court heard Ansar, previously from Shard End, suffered paranoid schizophrenia and had not been taking her medication at the time. On Wednesday she was sentenced to a hospital order with restrictions under the Mental Health Act, reports BirminghamLive. She admitted threatening someone with a knife, aggravated vehicle taking, three charges of assaulting an emergency worker as well as driving without a licence and insurance. Ansar had boarded the bus on Timberley Lane, Shard End, shortly after midnight on September 24 last year. She asked to go to Small Heath but when Mr Lewis said he was going to Birmingham Airport she agreed to go there instead. Prosecutor Sally Cairns said: "When they arrived the defendant was the only passenger. She lay down across the back seats. Mr Lewis drove the bus to a stand at Birmingham Airport and displayed the 'out of service' sign. He asked the defendant if she was going to leave. She demanded to be taken to London. "Mr Lewis told her he couldn't do that, but he could take her back to where she got on. The defendant walked down the bus, close to the driver's side, with a kitchen knife in her hand. She said 'if you don't take me to London I will kill you', swearing at Mr Lewis." Mr Lewis agreed and convinced Ansar to let him go to the toilet. Instead, he alerted police at the airport but when they returned the bus had gone. It was next spotted on Coventry Road where Ansar turned off into St. Benedicts Road which had cars parked on either side. Ms Cairns said: "As it drove down the bus clipped wing mirrors. The defendant turned left and tried to turn the rear of the bus. It collided with a parked car and pushed that car into another car. The defendant carried on driving dragging parked cars caught on the bus. She tried to manoeuvre the bus by doubled parked cars but the bus became lodged." Police arrived to find Ansar beeping the horn, 'acting bizarrely' and 'asking for a Lamborghini'. She was arrested but later on that morning she spat in the face of a detention officer after asking to be let go. She also spat at two police constables after being taken to Sandwell Hospital having complained of chest pains. Psychiatrists have confirmed she suffers from paranoid schizophrenia with symptoms including hearing voices and acting upon them, the court was told. Ansar is currently being treated at Chadwick Lodge secure mental health hospital in Milton Keynes. Recorder Rebecca Wade agreed to the recommendation for a hospital order with restrictions, concluding Ansar had a 'lack of insight' into her mental illness and offending as well as taking into account her 'persistent history of none-compliance with treatment'. She added she posed a risk of causing serious harm to the public if not detained.
ITV News
25-05-2025
- ITV News
Ukraine War: Russian drones damage Kyiv in 'massive' attack after prisoner swap
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