Teenagers Jailed for at Least 15 Years for Killing Boy on London Bus

Two teenagers who smiled as they fatally stabbed a 14-year-old schoolboy on a bus have been sentenced to at least 15 years in prison.

- Nadeem Badshah

Kelyan Bokassa called: "I want my mum" after he was fatally wounded in front of horrified passengers on the route 472 bus in Woolwich, southeast London, on 7 January.

The attack lasted about 14 seconds, with the teenagers thrusting the machetes towards Kelyan 27 times, the Old Bailey heard.

His killers, aged 16, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to Kelyan's murder and having a knife.

In a televised sentencing yesterday, Judge Mark Lucraft KC told the pair they would be locked up for at least 15 years and 10 months before being eligible for parole.

Lucraft said the schoolboy's death was a "senseless loss" of yet another young life to the "horrors of knife crime".

In a victim impact statement, Kelyan's mother, Marie Bokassa, said: "At least my son is at peace, and those two kids are going to have a really tough time.