Fred Shand murder trial: Teen defendant’s father found photo of son posing ‘like gangster’ with ‘machete’ on phone

The father of one of the teenagers charged with Fred Shand’s murder has told a jury that he threw away a machete he used for gardening after finding a photo of his son posing with it on his phone.

This morning (July 27), Northampton Crown Court heard that the 17-year-old defendant will not be giving any evidence in the murder trial.

This follows after three days of hearing evidence from the jointly charged 15-year-old defendant, who stabbed 16-year-old Fred in Harborough Road, Kingsthorpe on March 22.

The 17-year-old’s father was called to the stand to give evidence this morning, assisted by a Romanian translator. He told the court that he raised his son as a single parent and, after moving to Northampton, he discovered that the previous owner left behind some gardening tools in the courtyard - including a machete.

The father said the machete was in “good condition” with its own holder and he used it for cutting trees and wood. He said he kept it in his tool shed when he was not using it.

The court heard that the father gave his phone to his son and bought himself a new one because, as his son was going to school, he wanted to keep in touch with him.

Benjamin Aina KC, the 17-year-old’s defence barrister, asked his father if he saw anything on his son’s phone that caused him concern. He began to describe a photo he found of his son in the kitchen of their home.

“He had a mask that I was using at work and took a photo of the machete that I use to cut wood,” the witness said.

The father was asked what his reaction was when he saw his son dressed from head to toe in black with a face covering and holding the machete.

The father replied: “Like any parent, it wasn’t good.”

Miss Jane Bickerstaff KC, prosecuting, asked the father if his work required him to wear a full-face balaclava at work.

“Yes, it was during the pandemic,” he said.

The prosecutor asked if he agreed that his son was trying to make himself look like a “gangster” - he disagreed, asking if I would look like a gangster if he wore a mask.

When asked why he was looking through his son’s phone, he said it was because it was both his phone and his son’s phone. Miss Bickerstaff pointed out that he earlier told jurors that he bought himself a new phone and gave his son his old one.

Miss Bickerstaff asked the father if he spoke to his son about the photo after he found it.

He said: “Yes, I told him that it’s not nice to have a photo like this on his phone with a tool that I use for work in the garden.”

The 17-year-old’s father told the court that he asked his son to delete the photo and he “disposed” of the machete by throwing it into his garden bin. His son did not delete the image, the court heard.

Referring to the incident, which happened in 2021, Miss Bickerstaff asked “Why did you not just tell him - ‘you are 14, do not touch this knife ever again?’”

“I told him,” the father said.

“Were you worried that he wouldn’t listen to you and that he would in fact take that knife again?”

“I was worried.”

He told the court that, after discovering this photo, he did not continue to monitor his son’s phone because he “trusted” him.

The jury was shown a Facebook Live from January 13, 2021 of the father recording himself singing and cooking on a barbecue. In the bottom right hand corner of the video, that same machete could be seen on the ground.

Miss Bickerstaff asked the father why the machete was on display in this video when he told the jury earlier that he kept it in the shed when he was not using it. He claimed that he had been using it to cut wood for the barbecue and had not put it away because he was not finished cooking.

Jurors were shown a photo of the 17-year-old defendant wearing all black clothes with a black face covering and posing with a hunting knife in his right hand. There was a second teenager in the photo dressed similarly, who the father said he did not recognise.

The court heard that this picture was taken in public in William Street, Northampton. The father questioned if it was “in public” because his son is standing on a “corner of the block.”

This photo was taken after the first image with the machete, the court heard.

“After you spoke to him, he didn’t lose his interest in knives, did he?” Miss Bickerstaff asked the older defendant’s father.

“He didn’t go out into the public, he didn’t beat anyone, he didn’t kill anyone,” he said.

The father was asked if he was aware that his son called for another boy to bring two knives to a fight.

“So for a fight, not for anything else,” he remarked.

“Your question implies that you think it is alright for your son to be calling for weapons if you think it is for a fight,” Miss Bickerstaff said, perplexed.

“Okay but I was called to speak about this knife in the photo. I don’t know anything else about this case,” he said.

“You have been sitting in this court in the public gallery every day listening to this case.”

“And I don’t speak English.”

“You do speak some English, don’t you?”

The father said he was not able to because of mental health problems.

When asked if he knew his son’s co-defendant, he said he had never seen him before this trial.

The trial continues.

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 closing its case, the jury were taken step-by-step through key moments which led to the Kingsthorpe College pupil’s death.

Having been told the agreed facts of the case, the jury heard 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.

The 15-year-old defendant stood to give evidence in court for the first time on Friday afternoon (July 21), when the court heard him say young people buy knives “for show” and to “look cool”.The younger defendant charged with murder said he felt ‘upset’ seeing a picture of the 16-year-old Fred Shand for the first time because of “how it happened and how it went down”.

The 15-year-old defendant, continuing his evidence on July 24, said he wore a balaclava and carried a knife on the day of the fatal stabbing to “look as scary as possible” but claimed he had no intention of using the knife as a weapon.

Continuing his evidence that same afternoon, the 15-year-old defendant describes the moments leading up to the fatal stabbing. The younger defendant said he “did not realise” he stabbed Fred until the 16-year-old collapsed and he saw the blood on his knife.

The younger defendant admitted going against an “agreement” with his older co-defendant not to use a knife in the confrontation with Fred and his friend when he was cross-examined in court on July 25.

Miss Bickerstaff, prosecuting, accused the 15-year-old of “telling lots of lies” to the jury and the court heard that he obtained the knife that killed Fred by asking “strangers” in the street to buy the blade for him. The younger defendant concluded his evidence.

Benjamin Aina KC, defending the 17-year-old, told Northampton Crown Court on July 27 that his client will not be giving any evidence in the murder trial.

The trial continues.