A 19-year-old has been convicted of murder following the “brutal and senseless” stabbing of a 17-year-old boy outside Bedford bus station on 8 January 2025.
Bennett Ndenkeh, 19, was today (Thursday) found guilty of the murder of Thomas Taylor, who was stabbed to death on Wednesday, 8 January 2025.
At around 5.50pm, a group of teenagers launched an attack on Thomas and two others in Greenhill Street by Bedford bus station, escalating when Ndenkeh produced a knife and fatally stabbed Thomas.
Read: Teenage boy murdered at Bedford bus station
A second teenager, 18-year-old Riaz Miah, was found not guilty of murder but convicted of manslaughter in connection with the incident.
During the trial, the court heard how Miah had been assaulted by someone linked to Thomas in the days before the stabbing.
The prosecution barrister, Mark Heywood KC, was quoted on the BBC News website as saying that the “background” to the attack “almost certainly” related to an incident some days earlier involving Mr Miah.
The barrister said that evidence suggested that Mr Miah had been assaulted by a youth associated with Thomas and the incident had become an “issue”.
Retaliation
On the day itself, Miah and Thomas exchanged messages, with Thomas warning against retaliation, before agreeing to meet in the town centre where the fatal altercation took place.
Emergency services were called to the scene in Greenhill Street, and Thomas was taken to Bedford hospital, where he died shortly after arrival.
The offenders dispersed minutes after the stabbing and left the town centre – Ndenkeh took a taxi, and Miah was picked up in a friend’s car.
Detectives from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit used CCTV to help identify the teenagers and track their movements leading up to the attack and as they fled.
Both Ndenkeh and Miah were arrested within three days of the murder.
Read: Three teenagers arrested as police investigate bus station murder
Officers recovered a number of suspicious messages on seized devices, including one from Miah telling someone else who was at the altercation to “no comment everything” just hours before his arrest.
Seven-week trial
Ndenkeh, of Midland Road, Bedford, and Miah, of Foster Hill Road, Bedford, were convicted following a seven-week trial at Luton Crown Court and are due to be sentenced on 10 October.
Two other teenagers were found not guilty of murder following the trial, and the jury was unable to reach a verdict on a fifth defendant.
“Brutal and senseless”
Detective Chief Inspector Richard Stott, who led the investigation for the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit, said: “This was a brutal and senseless act of violence that has ended the life of a young man who had so many years and experiences still in front of him and devastated the lives of those who knew him.
“Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time.
“It has also drastically altered the path of the two people found guilty today, who are now facing the prospect of spending many of the prime years of their lives behind bars.
“The tragic death of Thomas shows the ripple effect that choosing to carry a weapon can have not just on the person who carries one.
“It is a dangerous myth that carrying a knife offers protection or power, as in reality, it only increases the risk of serious harm – both to the person carrying it and to everyone around them.
“We urge anyone thinking of picking up a weapon – or supporting those who do – to think twice, and Just Drop It to help prevent more lives from being needlessly cut short or forever ruined.”
You can find out more about Bedfordshire’s ‘Just Drop It’ anti-knife crime campaign and the support available for young people and parents at bedsvepp.org/just-drop-it.
