Three boys sentenced for killing of Mikey Roynon in Bath
Mikey died after being stabbed once in the neck at a 16th birthday party last summer - with the judge ruling the three responsible can be named
Last updated 3rd May 2024
A judge has ruled three boys found guilty of killing 16-year-old Mikey Roynon in Bath can be named, as he sentenced them to a collective total of 34 years and six months behind bars.
Mikey, from Kingswood in South Gloucestershire, died on 10 June 2023 after being stabbed once in the neck while at a 16th birthday party in the Weston area of Bath.
Throughout the trial at Bristol Crown Court the defendants were granted anonymity because of their ages, but we can now name them as Shane Cunningham, Cartel Bushnell and Leo Knight, all 16.
Cunningham admitted stabbing Mikey and was found guilty of murder despite having argued it was self defence, while Bushnell and Knight were both found guilty of manslaughter for their involvement.
Bushnell had also admitted being in possession of a knife, while Knight denied the same charge but was also found guilty of that.
Cunningham will serve a life term with a minimum sentence of 16 years for murder, while Bushnell and Knight will serve nine and nine and a half years respectively for manslaughter, two thirds behind bars and the rest on licence.
In a statement read out in court during today’s hearing, Mikey’s mum, Hayley Ryall, described the impact her son’s death had on her.
She said: “Every morning I wake up and it hurts as much as the last morning.
“I keep having awful dreams that Mikey is lost and I’m looking for him, but even the awful dreams are better than waking up to reality.
“At least in my dreams he is somewhere, whereas in reality he is gone.”
She also spoke of her fear of the court process and of the future, and added: “I feel like I’m living in a film or a nightmare and soon I’ll wake up and I’ll be able to hug and kiss him and Mikey will say “it’s OK mum”,
“Will justice help me? I don’t know and I’m not even sure I want to know because life will never be normal again.”
The trial
During proceedings at Bristol Crown Court, we heard Mikey was stabbed in the back garden of a house on Eastfield Avenue, when a confrontation broke out between two groups of boys.
Giving evidence via video link a witness, who we cannot name, described how as many as a dozen boys pulled out weapons when tensions flared, though what caused the escalation, is not clear.
Cunningham admitted stabbing Mikey but argued he acted in reasonable self defence, with Mikey swinging a knife first.
The witness gave evidence that he was "60 per cent sure" Mikey had a knife and swung it "like a Star Wars character" before being stabbed.
However, no other evidence was provided to prove Mikey was armed.
Bushnell and Knight were also charged with murder as, the prosecution argued, they also had knives drawn in a way which encouraged the fatal stabbing and attempted to dispose of evidence afterwards, which implied guilt.
The day of the party
Bristol Crown Court heard the defendants had travelled to Bath on a bus from Devizes on the evening of the party, as part of a group of eight boys.
Mikey also travelled to Bath on a different bus from his home in Bristol with his own group of friends.
Once at the party, the primary witness in the case described how he ran out into the garden after looking through a window and seeing the group of boys from Bristol holding knives and wearing balaclavas.
Once outside, the witness testified seeing Mikey swing a knife towards Bushnell, which prompted Cunningham to swing back, catching Mikey in the neck.
However when cross examined by the prosecution the witness said they were only 60 per cent sure that the first person to swing a knife was Mikey, as they were wearing a balaclava at the time.
Once stabbed, the court heard how Mikey stumbled through the house, saying "I am going to die" before collapsing on the drive way outside.
The three defendants initially denied all charges against them, though Cunningham went on to admit having a knife and stabbing Mikey in self defence.
Bushnell admitted being in possession of a knife but denied murder.
Knight denied having a weapon but was also found guilty of that charge as well as manslaughter.
During the trial the prosecution said police had found a knife hidden under a hedge in the days after the stabbing, which had Knight's DNA on.
CCTV footage of the boys travelling to the party was also shown, in which Knight appeared to have an object down his trousers, which the prosecution argued was the knife and the blade was found covered in spots of Mikey's blood when it was found, which it was argued meant it must have been drawn and near Mikey at the moment he was stabbed.
Detective Inspector Mark Newbury, the senior investigating officer with Avon and Somerset Police, said: "That three boys armed themselves with knives to go to a teenage girl's 16th birthday party is utterly unconscionable.
"Mikey went to that party to socialise and to have a good time.
"Instead, he was attacked with a horrifying weapon, suffered a catastrophic injury and tragically lost his life.
"Mikey was a much loved teenage boy and his family have been left totally devastated.
"They have shown incredible bravery and have courageously spoken out against knife crime since his death, which is something they should never have to do."
Sentencing remarks
In victim impact statements read to the court, Mikey's mum, dad and grandmother each said their lives will never be the same again.
Read by the prosecution barrister, mum Hayley Ryall said she first heard what had happened while at a work event in Birmingham, when she noticed she had 37 missed calls.
"I couldn't think straight, I couldn't walk, I was sick," she said.
"I told everyone they were lying."
She talked of struggling to sleep ever since and having nightmares when she does.
"At least in my dreams he is somewhere," she said.
Passing sentence, the judge praised the family of Mikey for their dignity during the trial.
"I have this morning heard the moving victim personal statements from Mikey's mother, father and grandmother," judge Pushpinder Saini said.
"On the day Mikey was killed he was only 16 and still a child. His family have suffered a loss that is unimaginable.
"Mikey had a big musical career ahead of him and although he faced a number of challenges in his life, his future was promising."
The judge went on: "Bristol and its surrounding areas are in the middle of a plague of knife crime. That plague has continued since this trial concluded.
"The lives of boys who carry knives continue to be taken by those who also carry knives."
Detective Inspector Mark Newbury, the senior investigating officer, said: “Mikey’s death sent shockwaves throughout his local community in Kingswood and the community of Bath where he was stabbed.
“The boys responsible for the dreadful attack travelled to the house party it happened at from the Wiltshire area.
“Knife crime is a disease which leaves a horrifying and long-lasting mark on everyone it affects, it’s a national problem which isn’t limited to specific towns or cities and we must come together as a society to tackle it.
“Mikey’s mum has shown tremendous fortitude since losing her only child and I have the utmost respect for the bravery she has shown in talking openly about her grief and how she has highlighted the devastation knife crime causes.”
He added: “Earlier this year, we launched a proactive operation to tackle and disrupt serious violence and knife crime involving young people but police enforcement alone isn’t the answer.
“We’re working closely with our local authority partners, our colleagues in education and health and the Violence Reduction Partnership to identify the root causes and divert young people away from criminality.
“But we also need parents to talk to their children about knife crime – to make sure that they understand the terrible consequences carrying a knife can have and also how to report if they have concerns about someone they know carrying a knife.
“Mikey’s death was utterly senseless and totally avoidable and we owe it our children to make sure we do everything we can to ensure other 16-year-olds never suffer the same fate.”