A teenage boy has appeared in court charged with the murder of a 17-year-old boy in Greater Manchester.
The 17-year-old suspect, who cannot be named, is accused of stabbing Yousef Makki in the Hale Barns area of Trafford on Saturday evening. He was also charged with possession of a knife.
Appearing at Manchester youth court on Wednesday, he spoke only to confirm his name and date of birth. During the brief hearing he appeared composed, looking over at his parents, who were sitting together at the front of the court.
The chair of the bench, Joyce Fletcher, told him the offence was too serious to be heard at the youth court and his case would be transferred to Manchester crown court, where he was scheduled to appear on Thursday. No application was made for bail.
Another 17-year-old boy, who also cannot be named for legal reasons, appeared in the same court on Wednesday afternoon charged with possession of a knife and assisting an offender.
He smiled to family members who sat in court as he entered the dock. Magistrates granted him bail until 28 March, when he will appear again at Manchester youth court.
Under his bail conditions he must submit to a curfew between 7pm and 7am and not apply for international travel documents. He had already surrendered his passport, the court heard.
Yousef, a gifted student who won a bursary to attend the fee-paying Manchester grammar school, died in hospital shortly after the incident on Gorse Bank Road.
He lived in Burnage, south Manchester, and had aspirations to pursue a career in medicine, his school said.
His family said he had phoned home shortly before the incident to say he would be home for tea and that they were “absolutely devastated”.
They said: “Yousef was a loving and caring son and brother and he meant the world to his family. He was a sporty young man, a dedicated student and so bright. He had everything to look forward to. We are absolutely devastated and cannot believe that our son has gone. This senseless loss has affected the whole community.
“Yousef had only phoned home hours earlier to say that he would be home for his tea, but the next knock at the door were officers with the tragic news. It is every parent’s worst nightmare.”
The high master of Manchester grammar, Dr Martin Boulton, said: “It is impossible to make sense of such a senseless act, which has taken away a proud family’s son, a dear friend and a young man of such promise. There has been an outpouring of grief at school at this tragic loss.
“The thoughts of the whole school community are with Yousef’s family. At this time, we would ask that the privacy of his family and friends is respected, while we all mourn and seek to come to terms with what has happened.”
