Two 16-year-old boys have been sentenced to a minimum of 15 years and 10 months in prison for the murder of 14-year-old Kelyan Bokassa on a bus in south-east London. The attack, which lasted just 14 seconds, saw the teenagers stab Kelyan 27 times with machetes as passengers watched in horror. The boys, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to murder and possession of a knife.
At the Old Bailey on Friday, Judge Lucraft KC described Kelyan's death as a 'senseless loss' to the 'horrors of knife crime'. The court heard that Kelyan called out 'I want my mum' after being fatally wounded. In a victim impact statement, his mother Marie Bokassa said: 'At least my son is at peace, and those two kids are going to have a really tough time.' She added that she had spent her son's 15th birthday at his graveside.
CCTV footage showed Kelyan, an aspiring rapper, boarding the route 472 bus just after 2pm on 7 January. He sat on the back seat of the top deck with a knife in his waistband, appearing to look around nervously. The two defendants boarded 20 minutes later, each with a machete hidden in their clothes. They walked towards Kelyan 'with purpose' and began stabbing him without a word, smiling as they did so.
Prosecutor Deanna Heer KC said Kelyan had no time to reach for his own knife and tried to defend himself with his schoolbag. Other passengers fled the top deck in panic, hearing intense screaming and the victim shouting for help. The bus driver activated an emergency alarm, and the defendants fled when the vehicle stopped at Woolwich Ferry. Kelyan stumbled down the aisle, bleeding heavily from a leg wound, and collapsed after repeating his wish to see his mother.
Members of the public flagged down a police car, but Kelyan died at the scene at 3.23pm. One of the machetes was thrown into the River Thames but later recovered. Samantha Yelland of the CPS London North said the boys' 'violent attack' left Kelyan with little chance of survival.
