Postcode gang killer jailed for 22 years over stabbing of former Forest academy star

A BRUTE who took the life of a 16-year-old former footballer amidst a postcode gang feud in Birmingham has been sentenced to 22 years behind bars.

- By CARL JACKSON

Ishmael Farquharson plunged a knife into former Nottingham Forest academy star Sekou Doucoure’s chest on the forecourt of an Esso petrol station at around 6.30pm on July 12, 2022.

CCTV footage revealed the pair engaging in a knife duel prior to the lethal strike.

Farquharson maintained that he acted in self-defence. He was acquitted of murder by a jury but found guilty of manslaughter.

The 34-year-old, of Porchester Drive, close to the incident location, was also found guilty of possessing an offensive weapon in public, reports Birmingham Live.

Judge Paul Farrer KC, delivering the sentence at Birmingham Crown Court this week, stated that Farquharson sought “retribution” against Sekou and his actions were “close” to murder.

He addressed him saying: “You led the pursuit of a rival gang member and did so intending on causing injury.

“You were armed with a significant knife and, having located your victim, you engaged in a knife fight with him which led to him being fatally injured.

“You didn’t intend to cause really serious injury but, as you accepted, this was a deliberate stabbing with a significant knife. You must have intended to cause him injury, falling just short of this.”

Sekou had been a promising footballer who once played for Nottingham Forest but the trial detailed how he had tragically slipped into gang culture.

The jury was informed that he was a “prominent young member” of a gang known as Get Round Der (GRD), linked with the B20 postcode areas of Perry Barr and Handsworth Wood.

Evidence from his mobile phone indicated that on July 12 that year, he and an unidentified associate intentionally rode a bike and e-scooter into “enemy territory’:

Specifically, this referred to the neighbouring B19 postcode area of Newtown, primarily associated with the 9Boyz gang.