Glendon Spence death: Boy, 17, guilty of youth club stab murder
A 17-year-old boy has been found guilty of stabbing a man to death in a south London youth centre.
Glendon Spence sought refuge at Marcus Lipton Youth Centre, Brixton, on 21 February, after being pursued by two men armed with knives. The 23-year-old was then attacked and fatally stabbed in the thigh. Rishon Florant, 17, from Waltham Forest, was found guilty of murder after a trial at the Old Bailey. He will be sentenced on 11 October. Chibuzo Ukonu, 18, of Loughton, Essex, was convicted of manslaughter at the same court. Judge Mark Dennis QC lifted an order banning identification of the younger defendant in light of his conviction. 'Flight to Uganda' Ukonu had admitted being present and in possession of a knife but denies intending to harm anyone or causing any injuries to Mr Spence. Jurors were told the attack, which happened at about 18:45 GMT, was captured on CCTV. They heard a BMW Series 5 car, bought by Ukonu days before the attack, dropped the defendants off at the scene. Prosecutor Julian Evans said: "Glendon ran into the main room and headed towards the far end. "As he ran, he lost his footing and fell to the ground. He managed to get up but he fell over again near to the corner of the main room close to a table tennis table." He said as Mr Spence lay on the floor, Florant stabbed him in his right thigh, which caused "sudden and immediate blood loss". Later that night, the BMW car was found fire-damaged and abandoned on the Peabody Estate in south London. Police arrested Florant as he attempted to take a flight to Uganda from Heathrow Airport the next day, while Ukonu took a coach to Manchester. The defendants did not react as the verdicts were given but raised voices could be heard as they were led from the dock. A woman in the public gallery angrily shouted they had been convicted "by an all-white jury" before walking out. Judge Dennis thanked the jury and added that "emotions are always very high" in such cases.