Fred Shand murder trial: 17-year-old pleads guilty to possession of bladed article at scene of stabbing, court hears

The 17-year-old defendant has pleaded guilty to being in possession of a bladed article in Harborough Road on the day of the fatal stabbing of Fred Shand (March 22), the court heard.

The older defendant has admitted that he was in possession of the Arizona “hunter” knife seized from the garden of his home address following the incident.

As the court heard during the sequence of events on Thursday afternoon (July 20), the knife was imported by the 15-year-old defendant on February 23 this year and was not the murder weapon.

This count has been added a considerable time after the 17-year-old first submitted a handwritten statement, signed and dated March 23.

After confirming his name and date of birth, the written statement read: “At no point on March 22, 2023 have I been in possession of any knife or other weapon.

“At no point have I assaulted, stabbed, or slashed anyone, nor have I caused anyone any injury or subsequent death.

“I had no knowledge of any knife at the scene at the time of the alleged incident before any assault took place.

“At no point on this date did I intend for anyone to come to harm, nor was I aware of any intention of another person to cause serious harm, if this was in fact the case.”

The court heard this statement again during the agreed facts of the case on Thursday (July 20), after learning the 17-year-old defendant had pleaded guilty to the new count.

The older defendant will have the opportunity to provide the jury with evidence or a new statement when the defence proceeds with its case.

Among the other agreed facts were information about the co-defendant’s identities – namely full names, ages, addresses, social media handles and the counts they face.

The court also heard agreed facts about Fred Shand and what they had earlier heard from witness Dr Frances Hollingbury, who carried out his post mortem examination.

A run down of the items seized from the home of the 17-year-old defendant after the incident were shared.

This included the murder weapon found under an overturned dog bed, which was tested and found to have the 15-year-old defendant’s DNA on – as well as the knife the jury heard the 17-year-old has pleaded guilty to being in possession of at the time of the incident.

The court heard this black Arizona knife was a total of 26 centimetres in length and was found to have the 17-year-old’s DNA on – as well as the sheath found alongside the knife in the bushes at the back of the garden.

The two knives were shown in plastic tubes in court.

The agreed facts also touched upon the photos and CCTV the jury has seen, how data was retrieved from the defendant’s phones, and information described in a “miscellaneous” category.

The jury also heard that the times the co-defendants had been interviewed, on March 23 and 24, they responded ‘no comment’ to everything – apart from when the 17-year-old produced the aforementioned handwritten statement at his first interview on March 23.

What else has happened in the trial so far?

The two teenage boys from Northampton, who were aged 14 and 16 at the time but are now 15 and 17, pleaded not guilty to their murder charge before Northampton Crown Court on April 24. They cannot be named for legal reasons.

Miss Jane Bickerstaff KC, the prosecuting barrister, kickstarted the trial on Wednesday (July 12) with the prosecution opening after the jury was sworn in on Monday (July 10).

The court heard the younger defendant, aged 15, faces an additional charge of carrying an article with a blade or a sharp point in a public place – which he has already pleaded guilty to.

The court heard 16-year-old Rohan Shand, known as Fred, died after being stabbed near the Cock Hotel in Harborough Road at about 3.35pm on March 22 while on his way home from Kingsthorpe College.

Miss Bickerstaff KC, of the prosecution, told the court it was the 15-year-old male defendant that carried out the stabbing and he was accompanied by the 17-year-old in the planned “joint enterprise attack” – shown by CCTV footage in court.

The stabbing followed an altercation outside McDonalds in the Drapery, which the court heard took place the day before (March 21).

A male had his “face sliced with a belt buckle” during that “dispute” and the two defendants were a friend of his. The co-defendants believed Fred Shand was at the forefront of the group responsible.

The court heard that after the co-defendants arrived at Kingsthorpe College later than planned on March 22, they rode on scooter towards the town centre via Harborough Road.

The entire incident was over in seven seconds after Fred, his teen friend and the two co-defendants came together for the first time at 3.34pm on March 22 on the green in Harborough Road, the court heard.

The co-defendants fled the scene on foot to the home of the 17-year-old, where they were detained by police shortly after – along with what is believed to be the murder weapon, a second knife and clothing worn during the incident.

During the second day of the trial (Thursday, July 13) – the first in which witnesses were called on to give evidence by the prosecution – the court saw 360 degree imagery to give them an understanding of the area, as well as video footage that has been recovered from March 22.

On the morning of the third day of the trial (Friday, July 14), the pathologist that conducted Fred’s post-mortem examination gave her expert evidence on the cause of death.

This was followed by evidence given by the teen friend who was with Fred on the day of the fatal stabbing.

Kickstarting the second week (Tuesday, July 18), the two eyewitnesses who followed the co-defendants home after the incident were called to give evidence.

The final live witness took to the stand to conclude the morning sitting, when the court heard he saw the blade pulled from the younger defendant’s trousers.

Five written witness statements were read aloud to conclude Tuesday’s sitting (July 18) – one of which detailed a nine second phone call the 15-year-old defendant had with a friend ahead of the incident.

The final eight written statements were heard the following day (Wednesday, July 19), including five from members of the police force.

Ahead of the prosecution planning to close its case, the jury were taken step-by-step through key moments which led to the Kingsthorpe College pupil’s death.

The trial continues.