A driver who used his car as a weapon to hunt down and kill an electric bike rider in Birmingham has been sentenced to life in prison. Abdirahman Ibrahim, 21, was convicted of murder after ramming his Seat Leon into Liam Jones twice in the Yardley area on 1 August 2023.
Birmingham Crown Court heard that Ibrahim chased Jones and his friend Tayzhon Johnson without provocation, knocking Jones off his bike and into a concrete post. Jones, 22, died at the scene despite paramedics' efforts to save him. Judge Smith KC stated that Ibrahim used the car as a weapon and pursued the victims in a determined and deliberate manner.
The court was told that Jones and Johnson had realised they were being followed and attempted to escape down a one-way street, but Ibrahim drove at speed along another road to intercept them. The judge noted that Ibrahim showed no care for Jones after the collision, acting out of a selfish desire to escape.
Ibrahim's brother, Abdullahi Ibrahim, pleaded guilty to assisting an offender and was sentenced to two years and ten months for hiding the vehicle after the murder. Abdirahman Ibrahim had initially admitted manslaughter, claiming the collision was accidental, but was found guilty of murder in February after a retrial.
In a victim impact statement, Jones's sister Kelly described him as the spark of the family, saying his life was taken away in the worst possible way. She added that the family's lives have been shattered and they struggle every day without him.
