18-year-old found guilty of teenager's murder in Ilkeston
Noah Smedley was murdered days after Christmas in 2024
Last updated 25th Jul 2025
An 18-year-old has been found guilty of murdering teenager Noah Smedley in Ilkeston.
18-year-old Noah Smedley was stabbed in the chest on Heanor Road on December 28th 2024.
A court heard how Noah had planned to meet up with a group of teenagers, including the then 17-year-old Charles Hartle, on the night he was murdered.
Hartle, who is now 18, fatally stabbed the teeanger.
He had gone with friends to buy cannabis from Noah, when he pulled a Rambo knife from his waistband plunging it into his chest.
Hartle then fled the scene and went to meet his girlfriend at a house party. There, he confessed what he had done and produced the knife.
He later handed himself into police and was later found guilty after a two-week trial.
A total of eight people were arrested in connection with the police investigation, and Hartle was charged on 31 December.
The other seven people were all subsequently released without charge.
Hartle will be sentenced at Derby Crown Court on 22nd August.
Detective Constable Emma Barnes-Marriott, officer in the case said: “Noah was an unarmed teenager, who was simply meeting with friends on the night Charles Hartle decided to end his life.
“Noah did not threaten Hartle and showed nothing but friendliness towards him that evening, and yet he was brutally murdered.
“Charles Hartle is a callous and calculating young man, who has shown no recognition or remorse for taking another teenager’s life.
“He carried a knife with the intention to use it, over what appears to be a petty disagreement that only he was aware of, and a sense of bravado.
“I’d like to thank Noah’s family for their support during our investigation and the trial.
“No family should have to go through the ordeal of losing a loved one, especially at such a young age, and to have to relive their last moments at trial is an additional blow that Hartle could have spared them from.
“Instead, despite overwhelming evidence, he remained silent and refused to take responsibility for Noah’s murder.
“I know that nothing will bring Noah back but hope that today’s verdict has provided his family with some comfort that justice has been done.”