Teen boy who admitted to killing 12-year-old Leo Ross to be sentenced – live updates | UK news
The teenage boy who admitted killing 12-year-old Leo Ross will be sentenced today
Teenager who killed 12-year-old student Leo Ross He was sentenced in Birmingham last year and will be sentenced later today.
The hearing at Birmingham Crown Court is likely to last all day and contain information that readers may find disturbing.
On January 29, 2026, a 15-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted killing Leo by stabbing him in the stomach during a random attack in a parkland.
Leo was thought to have been stabbed on January 21, 2025, on his way home from Christ Church, Church of England Secondary School in Yardley Wood, Birmingham.
The attacker, who was 14 at the time, also admitted assault causing grievous bodily harm with intent and assault occasioning actual bodily harm in relation to previous attacks on separate victims, as well as possessing a knife article on him on the day he killed Leo.
He denied assault causing actual bodily harm on October 22, 2024, and assault by battery in relation to two other victims on December 29, 2024, and it was decided that these charges would be included in the file.
Police investigations revealed that the knife used to kill Leo had been thrown into a nearby river and that the boy responsible had ridden his bike and previously attacked several women in the local parkland.
An investigation by West Midlands police found that the killer preferred to wait to speak to officers at the scene of the murder, falsely claiming that Leo lay mortally wounded by the River Cole.
It emerged that Leo had no connection to the attacker and was killed in what senior officers believed was a random and unprovoked stabbing. The accused is expected to appear before Justice Choudhury KC for sentencing.
important events
Judge Choudhury has backed out of the KC deliberation and will make a decision shortly on whether to lift the reporting restriction.
Leo Ross’ foster family is in court this morning to hear the judge hand down the sentence, which will be given this afternoon.
Leo Ross’ killer remains a ‘young and vulnerable person’, defense lawyer says
defense lawyer Alistair Webster K.C. opposes lifting the reporting restriction. He told the court that naming the defendant was not in the public interest and that his rehabilitation would be at serious risk if his identity was disclosed.
He said:
These were shocking crimes that caused great distress and an ongoing sense of loss to the families involved and the victims.
We are aware that the public and the press will be very interested in how the court handled the sentence and what the sentence was…
But sometimes it is easy to confuse the public interest with interest on behalf of the public.
The defense lawyer acknowledged that the defendant “what he did was very wrong” but added: “He remains a human being, a young and vulnerable human being.”
According to the Mirror, a media appeal was made by Birmingham Live’s court reporter Carl Jackson.
Justice Choudhury KC adjourned the court to re-read the statements of the media seeking anonymity of the accused. The court is expected to reconvene in about half an hour.
Sentencing hearing begins at Birmingham Crown Court
The sentencing hearing has begun. First, there will be technical discussions regarding the determination of the name of the 15-year-old defendant, whose identity has not been disclosed due to legal restrictions around his age.
We now await the start of the sentencing hearing at Birmingham Crown Court. He should do this in a short time.
Leo was found stabbed in the stomach by a member of the public at around 15.40 on January 21, 2025. Police said it was a “chaotic and completely traumatic scene”. The person, who was taken to the hospital, died from his injuries at around 19.30.
Police said she spoke to a friend on the phone and arranged to meet by a tree in Trittiford Mill Park. His friend showed up at the meeting point, but Leo never showed up.
Family says Leo was ‘the sweetest, kindest boy’ whose ‘life was cut short by a senseless act’
Leo’s foster family, the Westons, said in a statement released after his death:
Not a day goes by that we don’t think about Leo. His loss has touched us deeply and his absence is constantly felt.
Leo was the sweetest, kindest boy who put others before himself. Everyone who knew him loved him, young and old, he made friends with everyone he met.
He was wise beyond his years, full of knowledge and facts, full of life. A life cut short because of a meaningless act.
Hopefully justice will be served and we can come to a conclusion no matter what the outcome is, it still won’t give Leo back his life, the life he truly deserves to live to the fullest.
Leo’s biological mother, Rachel Fisher, said:
My son Leo was the sweetest, most kind-hearted kid. There wasn’t a bad bone in his body.
My baby’s life was stolen for no reason. My life will never be the same again without him. He will be loved and missed forever.
The teenage boy who admitted killing 12-year-old Leo Ross will be sentenced today
Teenager who killed 12-year-old student Leo Ross He was sentenced in Birmingham last year and will be sentenced later today.
The hearing at Birmingham Crown Court is likely to last all day and contain information that readers may find disturbing.
On January 29, 2026, a 15-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted killing Leo by stabbing him in the stomach during a random attack in a parkland.
Leo was thought to have been stabbed on January 21, 2025, on his way home from Christ Church, Church of England Secondary School in Yardley Wood, Birmingham.
The attacker, who was 14 at the time, also admitted assault causing grievous bodily harm with intent and assault occasioning actual bodily harm in relation to previous attacks on separate victims, as well as possessing a knife article on him on the day he killed Leo.
He denied assault causing actual bodily harm on October 22, 2024, and assault by battery in relation to two other victims on December 29, 2024, and it was decided that these charges would be included in the file.
Police investigations revealed that the knife used to kill Leo had been thrown into a nearby river and that the boy responsible had ridden his bike and previously attacked several women in the local parkland.
An investigation by West Midlands police found that the killer preferred to wait to speak to officers at the scene of the murder, falsely claiming that Leo lay mortally wounded by the River Cole.
It emerged that Leo had no connection to the attacker and was killed in what senior officers believed was a random and unprovoked stabbing. The accused is expected to appear before Justice Choudhury KC for sentencing.
