Murder of Thomas Roberts

The Taliban thought that Abdulrahimzai's father was working with the United States, as well as illegally selling alcohol.

After being thrown to the side of a road, Abdulrahimzai's uncle arranged for him to be taken from Afghanistan to Pakistan, Iran, and other countries.

[7][8] On 31 July 2018, Abdulrahimzai used a Kalashnikov rifle to shoot dead two Afghan men, for which he was convicted in absentia of two counts of murder.

[10][11] In December 2019, it was rejected; during the same month, he illegally entered the United Kingdom via the Port of Poole, where he claimed asylum, pretending in a Home Office interview to be an unaccompanied 14-year-old.

[6][8] In November 2020, Abdulrahimzai was the victim of an assault in King's Park, Bournemouth, where he was bitten, stabbed in the eyebrow, and punched by multiple people.

The police had been unable to investigate the King's Park assault because Abdulrahimzai would not provide details of one of the people who punched him.

[8] In December 2020, Abdulrahimzai carried a knife while out shopping, as he was scared for his life after being tortured in Afghanistan and attacked since being in the UK.

[8] His first foster mother described Abdulrahimzai as a 'very troubled individual', stating that he had 'seen things he should never have seen', growing up in 'a world at war' and that 'his default is to fight.'

She described Abdulrahimzai's behaviour as 'a bit Jekyll and Hyde' towards the end of his time with her family, noting that his mood could go 'from 0 to 100 almost instantly' and that he had made her adult daughter cry.

[13] At 4:39 am, as they passed the Wild Fish and Chip Shop, Medway gestured to the e-scooter leaning against the window of a Subway, suggesting to Roberts that they could use it instead of getting a taxi.

[5][14][6] In response to this, at approximately 4:44 am, Abdulrahimzai produced a 10-inch, gold-handled knife that he had been carrying in a sheath on the right side of his body, tucked into the waistband of the two pairs of trousers he was wearing.

[5][6][8][13][15][excessive citations] At some stage, Abdulrahimzai dug a hole in the ground, buried the knife in some bushes, and later burned the clothes he had been wearing.

[8] Roberts had collapsed and was attended to by members of the public, who called an ambulance and attempted to manage his profusely bleeding wounds.

He went into cardiac arrest several times, but no medical intervention could save him from the wounds he had sustained, which were later confirmed by the pathologist as resulting in unsurvivable blood loss.

[6] On the morning of 12 March, Abdulrahimzai's phone, an Apple iPhone 6s, was found by police searching Horseshoe Common.

[8] Dr Amanda Jeffery conducted a post-mortem on Roberts at Holly Tree Lodge, Boscombe.

Dr Jeffery stated that the damage to the ribs indicated that the minimum amount of force used was 'moderate' on a scale of mild, moderate, and severe.

[13] Opening the prosecution case, Mr Lobbenberg KC explained to the jury that Abdulrahimzai had already pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

He explained that one of Roberts' lungs and the left ventricle of his heart were damaged by the stab wound to his chest.

[13] Giving evidence, Abdulrahimzai admitted to stabbing Roberts but claimed he did not intend to kill him or cause him serious harm.

He stated that he did not know Roberts was injured and that the only reason he ran was because he thought Medway, who was actually carrying his trainers after his laces became undone, was chasing him with a bottle.

A report from the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) dated 3 August 2021 identified areas of need, including flashbacks and trust issues, and also noted that Abdulrahimzai's mood could change.

[9] Following a two-week trial, the jury returned a majority verdict of 10 to 2, finding Abdulrahimzai guilty of murder.

"[20] Prior to Abdulrahimzai's sentencing, in response to a question in the House of Commons from Bournemouth East MP Tobias Ellwood, Robert Jenrick, Home Office Minister, explained that there would be a government investigation to establish the "full circumstances surrounding the case".

[20] After Bournemouth West MP Conor Burns raised the case in the Commons, Jenrick later added that Abdulrahimzai could be deported at the end of his sentence.

[21] Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council released a statement saying that local communities "are not at risk from asylum seekers".

The inquest heard that Abdulrahimzai had been referred to the Home Office's anti-terrorism programme, Prevent, due to concerns that he might be susceptible to terrorism.

He asked Griffin to check with Dorset Police about previous reports they had received concerning Abdulrahimzai being in possession of a knife days before Roberts' murder.

[19] Griffin asked Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council to provide information on their age assessment checks for Abdulrahimzai, and requested Dorset Police to supply files from the investigations, including any internal reviews.

However, on 4 September 2024, Griffen ruled there was 'no need' for a full inquest into the circumstances surrounding Roberts's death, noting the criteria for such an inquest had not been met under Article 2 of the European Convention of Human Rights, which states that if the state knew or ought to have known of an immediate risk to an individual's life, it must take reasonable steps to deal with that risk.