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An 18-year-old has been sentenced to a minimum of 25 years in prison after travelling over 150 miles from Leeds to London with the intent to fatally stab a man. Sulaiman Tajzai was convicted of murdering Farmanullah Sherzad, a 26-year-old shop worker, whom he attacked outside Sherzad’s home in Westminster on 27 March. The victim suffered at least ten stab wounds during the assault.
At the Old Bailey, Judge Angela Rafferty KC handed down a life sentence to Tajzai, emphasizing that the offender harbored a grudge against Sherzad rooted in false claims of misconduct. The judge described Tajzai’s behavior as “effectively stalking him down like prey” and labeled the attack as “exceptionally violent.” She made clear that no justification or excuse could be made on Tajzai’s behalf regarding his actions.
During the trial, it was revealed that Tajzai, an Afghan asylum seeker, mistakenly believed Sherzad was affiliated with the Taliban—a group he blamed for his father’s kidnapping and presumed death. Additionally, Sherzad had been previously arrested in Leeds in connection with an incident involving a woman linked to Tajzai, though police later decided no action was necessary. In January, Tajzai conducted surveillance around Sherzad’s home and workplace before attacking him in March. On the day of the murder, Tajzai armed himself with a kitchen knife, travelled to London, and was tracked via CCTV from King’s Cross station to Abbey Orchard Street, where he waited until Sherzad returned from work on his bicycle at approximately 10 p.m.
Prosecutor Lisa Wilding KC informed the court that Tajzai claimed to have been 14 upon his arrival in the UK in August 2022, subsequently seeking asylum the following year. Defense counsel Frida Hussain KC highlighted Tajzai’s post-traumatic stress disorder, attributing it to the violence he witnessed in his home village and the loss of relatives. Sherzad’s family remembered him as a “kind, gentle and free-spirited” individual, a passionate cricketer who frequently worked six or seven days a week. They expressed being “deeply shocked and angered by the circumstances surrounding his death.
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