A teenager who repeatedly stabbed a rival gang member in the garden of his home has been sentenced to eight years in prison. Jessie Henry, 18, attacked Lewis Dilallo, 17, in East Street, Gillingham, on July 30 last year. The attack occurred in the same street where Kyle Yule, 17, was fatally stabbed.
Maidstone Crown Court heard that Henry was a member of the Chatham C4 gang, while Dilallo belonged to the Gillingham G10 gang. The court was told there was bad blood between the teenagers, with Henry having previously threatened to 'shank' Dilallo outside Medway Magistrates' Court six months earlier.
On the day of the attack, Dilallo's mother, Nicola Ritchie, heard frantic banging on her door and saw the two youths wrestling outside. A neighbour later told police he saw Henry stab the victim five or six times in the stomach, arms, and back. A nine-year-old boy also witnessed the violence. Henry, wearing a bandana over his mouth, was heard saying to two masked friends: 'We got him good now and he isn't going to run his mouth any more.'
Mrs Ritchie managed to pull her bleeding son inside and call an ambulance. Dilallo, who refused to cooperate with police, was treated for wounds to his right wrist, stomach, left upper arm, lower back, left shoulder blade, and just below the left armpit. Henry was convicted of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm after denying the charge.
Judge Adele Williams described the attack as 'sustained' and motivated by gang rivalry. She noted that Henry had shown no remorse and posed a significant risk of causing serious harm to the public. Under an extended sentence, Henry must serve two-thirds of the term and will be on licence for a further two years. The judge added that if Henry had been an adult, the sentence would have been 12 years.
