Two teens plead guilty to stabbing 15 year-old in West Bromwich
Issac Brown died after the attack in New Square in April
Last updated 3rd Dec 2024
Two teenagers have admitted to the manslaughter of a 15-year-old in West Bromwich earlier this year.
Isaac Brown was stabbed to death in New Square just after 9pm on 7 April.
Isaac, along with two friends, arranged to meet up with Reehan Nezir, aged 18, and a 14-year-old boy who cannot be named for legal reasons, to ‘sort out’ a dispute.
At around 6.30pm earlier that day, a 12-year-old boy had been robbed by a group in Smethwick which included the two defendants.
The victim was assaulted and his jacket was stolen.
Isaac knew the victim of the robbery through a friend and circulated various messages on social media to find out the identity of the attackers.
The defendants communicated with Isaac and his friend on social media, which escalated tensions between the two groups.
Nezir posted: ‘Do you know who I am?’ and ‘I’ll teach you a lesson’.
The two groups then met in West Bromwich. Isaac and his friends were confronted by a group armed with weapons.
Isaac’s group ran away to New Square which is where they were confronted by Nezir and the 14-year-old boy.
CCTV footage showed disorder between the teenagers, where weapons were brandished. Tragically, Isaac was fatally stabbed in the chest.
Nezir, of Edith Road, Smethwick and the 14-year-old boy fled, but were both arrested the following day.
Today at Bolton Crown Court, the two teenagers admitted manslaughter, robbery and possession of an offensive weapon. They will be sentenced next year.
In tribute, Isaac’s family said: “Isaac is a wonderful, loving, kind, happy, son, brother, grandson, nephew and cousin.
“Fun and mischievous, always smiling and always there to help.
“We are unable to understand what has happened.
“We just want him back and this not to have happened.”
Detective Inspector Ade George from our Homicide Unit said: “Another young life has been lost as a result of young men carrying knives.
“Two groups met up to seek retribution for a robbery that happened earlier in the day.
“This revenge attack ended up having catastrophic consequences.
“We are doing everything we can to tackle knife crime by not only arresting offenders who choose to carry weapons but also educating young people and preventing them to being drawn into that lifestyle.”
In the West Midlands, our schools education and prevention programme is called #LifeorKnife and our officers deliver these sessions every week in primary and secondary schools, to children aged 9 years and above.
In these sessions the pupils explore themes around why people carry a weapon, the dangers it poses and the impact it can have on your life.
This work is delivered alongside dedicated policing to tackle serious youth violence by our Guardian Taskforce, which has expanded significantly over the past five years and has been instrumental in helping to see a reduction in knife crime over this period.