Wife of Ian Kirwan says she'll "never recover" after Redditch supermarket stabbing
Ian Kirwan, 53, was stabbed after a confrontation with a group of teens.
The wife of a man who was stabbed in a supermarket car park in Redditch has said she will "never recover" from losing her husband.
53-year-old Ian Kirwan was knifed in the heart by a teenager - then aged 14 - who was part of a masked group of youths who "terrorised" members of the public in March last year.
The now 15-year-old from Birmingham has been found guilty of murdering Mr Kirwan, who had challenged the youth for messing about in the toilets of an Asda store on March 8.
Mr Kirwan, described by his wife as a "wonderful person" with "the biggest heart", had popped to B&Q to buy a light switch, before going to Asda to use a toilet.
Following the jury's decision, Mr Justice Fraser told the teenage killer, who was not in court but attended from custody via video-link, he faces the "youth equivalent of a life sentence".
Turning to Mr Kirwan's wife and family, who were sat in court for the verdicts, Mr Justice Fraser said: "The court is well aware none of this process can bring him back or reduce the impact of his loss on all of your lives."
Outside court, Detective Superintendent Leighton Harding of West Mercia Police read a statement from Mr Kirwan's wife as she and her loved ones stood nearby.
In it, she praised her husband as "a big kid; a wonderful person who was full of love, kindness, and generosity".
"I really miss him in my life. I miss his ways that would drive me crazy but he always made me and our family and friends happy and there was never a day that we wouldn't laugh when he was with us," she said.
"Ian would always make us feel protected, secure and safe.
"Ian was the better half in our relationship. He gave people chances (and) was a fountain of knowledge."
"Ian would have helped anyone, even someone who had done him wrong. He had the biggest heart," she added.
She said the stabbing did not just take her husband's life, "it also took my life, my plans for the future and has an impact on all my choices".
Mr Kirwan's wife said "he died alone, surrounded by strangers who were kind enough to help him".
Describing him as her "rock" and "soulmate", she said: "Ian didn't deserve to die. He still had so much to live for."
Mr Harding said: "This was an appalling attack on an innocent man going about his daily life, which caused shock and upset in the local community."
Thanking the public for identifying witnesses who ended up being "crucial" to bringing the killer to justice, Mr Harding added: "Today's convictions send a clear message that we will take swift action against anyone who carries a knife or engages in violence."
Jurors cleared three of the other youths - two aged 14 and one 16 - of murder and manslaughter but found them guilty of violent disorder.
A fifth boy, 16, was acquitted of murder, manslaughter and violent disorder after saying he was not involved in the deadly confrontation and could not have predicted it.
The youths will be sentenced on February 15.