A killer yelled ‘I’m still breathing’ as he was jailed for life for murdering a teenager in a vape shop.
Nineteen-year-old Abdurrahman Summers yelled at Reuben Higgins’ family in court after receiving a sentence of at least 19 years for the attack.
Reuben, 17, was stabbed to death inside Vape Minimarket in Marston Green, Solihull, shortly after 6pm on October 29 last year.
Before this, he faced a group of four who claimed he had previously threatened one of them with a knife, although there was no evidence to support this according to a judge.
Reuben refused to go around the corner with them, prompting the group to reach for their waistbands and chase him.
CCTV footage shows Reuben desperately trying to hide inside the vape shop, barricading the door with his body.
But the gang forced their way inside before launching a frenzied knife attack.
Abdurrahman Summers, 19, yelled ‘I’m still breathing’ as he was jailed for life for murdering a teenager in a vape shop.
Reuben Higgins, 17, pleaded with a store worker after he was stabbed saying: ‘Call an ambulance, I’m dying’.
Flowers left at the scene in Marston Green where Reuben was stabbed to death
Reuben sustained a fatal stab wound to the heart, as well as two further stab wounds to the thigh and one to the arm.
One of the wounds penetrated 15cm deep.
Moments after he was stabbed, Reuben pleaded with a store worker: ‘Call an ambulance, I’m dying’.
Paramedics rushed to the shop but he had suffered catastrophic blood loss and died at the scene.
Following a trial Summers along with two 16-year-old boys who cannot be named were found guilty of murder.
A fourth suspect, who is believed to have initiated the confrontation and delivered the fatal blow, remains at large after fleeing to Pakistan.
At Birmingham Crown Court on Monday, the three who had been convicted were sentenced to life.
Summers directed his anger at Reuben’s family as he was sentenced, expressing outrage at his guilty verdict in May when he had declared, ‘I’m f***ing innocent’.
The 16-year-old boy who stabbed Reuben in the arm and leg received a minimum term of 17 years.
The other 16-year-old who ‘assisted and encouraged’ the attack received a minimum term 15 years.
Dominic Higgins, Reuben’s father, said he ‘adored’ his ‘precious, beautiful boy’, his only child, expressing sorrow that he ‘was becoming a man but never made it’.
Judge Paul Farrer KC stated Rueben was vulnerable by his age and circumstances.
He said: ‘He was unarmed, didn’t want trouble and was backing away in an effort to avoid confrontation.’
By contrast the judge concluded all three defendants were armed and went out prepared for trouble.
Prosecutor Richard Atkins KC had told the court the group ‘hunted him down and killed him’.
In a heartfelt statement, Reuben’s father Dominic Higgins shared his deep affection for his ‘precious, beautiful boy’, his only child, lamenting that he ‘was becoming a man but never made it’.
Mr Higgins said his ‘world fell apart’ when he died and that now he was ‘consumed by uncontrollable darkness’.
Reuben’s mother, Sarah Cooke, described him as ‘my best friend, my mini me in likeness and personality’, and said she felt ‘heartbroken, lost and lonely’ without him.
His step mother Polly Hudson described the killers as ‘heinous’ and said: ‘You may think your actions made you tough. They didn’t. They made you weak.’
She added: ‘Young men killing young men has to stop.’
Talbir Singh KC, in mitigation for one of the 16 year-olds described as the most ‘aggressive’ attacker, argued he did not deliver the fatal blow.
He told the court his client had a ‘difficult, unstable and nomadic’ upbringing, adding there was ‘evidence of older peers having a negative influence’ on him.
The other 16-year-old has convictions for ten robbery and attempted offences, many of which featured knives.
Anand Beharrylal KC, representing him, said he had a ‘very damaged upbringing’, including being physically abused.
He told the court he had neurodevelopmental conditions and was ‘susceptible to coercion and exploitation’, adding: ‘It’s highly likely he has been operating for some considerable time under the influence of others.’
Summers also has previous convictions for six robbery offences and one of possessing a knife.
He had purchased a bus ticket to Spain after the killing only to hand himself in.
Gregory Bull KC, mitigating, conceded his client was ‘immature’.
He stated Summers had a ‘difficult upbringing’ but his family had described him as otherwise ‘loving, kind, gentle and helpful’.
On Friday at Birmingham Crown Court Judge Paul Farrer KC refused a media application to name the two youths.
After hearing evidence about the potential damage it would have to their welfare and rehabilitation he concluded it was ‘not in the interests of justice’ to do so.
Detective Inspector Michelle Cordell, of West Midlands Police, said after the sentencing: ‘This was a cowardly and sickening attack on a defenceless young boy who was significantly outnumbered.
‘Their callous actions that day ended Reuben’s life in a matter of seconds.
‘Their senseless behaviour has had a devastating and lifelong impact on Reuben’s family, friends and loved ones and my thoughts remain with them.
‘I hope that today’s sentences offer some comfort to them, as they continue to grieve his loss.
‘The hunt for the fourth offender is on-going, and we will do everything possible to find him and bring him to justice.’
