Elianne Andam: Teenager who stabbed 15-year-old to death in Croydon guilty of murder

The teenager who stabbed 15-year-old Elianne Andam to death in a row over a teddy bear has been found guilty of murder.

Hassan Sentamu, 18, attacked Elianne with a kitchen knife in “white-hot anger at having been disrespected” after she stood up for his ex-girlfriend, the Old Bailey heard.

He had been due to return items including a teddy bear to Elianne’s friend following their break-up but instead came armed, wearing two pairs of gloves and a facemask.

Elianne collapsed outside the Whitgift Centre in central Croydon, south London, after being repeatedly stabbed in what police described as a “frenzied” attack, which was caught on CCTV, on 27 September 2023.

Her friend compared Sentamu to a character from the Netflix crime drama Top Boy and said Elianne had her hand out begging him to “stop”.

He threw his gloves and mask in a bin and hid the knife in a garden but was arrested within 90 minutes after police stopped a bus near his home in New Addington.

Sentamu, who was 17 at the time, admitted manslaughter but denied murder on the basis of “loss of control” because he has autism.

There were sobs and shouts of “yes” and “murderer” from the public gallery as he was found guilty by a majority verdict of 10 to two, while he stood propping himself up with both arms in the dock and crying.

He was also found guilty on a charge of having a blade. Sentamu had also denied this charge – claiming he had a lawful reason for carrying it.

Grime artist Stormzy was among thousands of mourners who gathered at a candlelit vigil after Elianne – who went to the private Old Palace of John Whitgift School – was killed, and there is now a memorial to her at the scene.

‘I’ll do it again’

The month after Elianne’s death, Sentamu got into a row with a fellow inmate in youth custody and when he was accused of killing girls, said: “I’ll do it again,” the court heard.

“I’ll do it to your mum,” he said. “Do you want to end up like her, six feet under? I’ll do the same again.”

Sentamu, who came to the UK aged five with his mother and three sisters, had a history of violent and aggressive behaviour, as well as making repeated threats to take his own life.

He was given a police caution after pulling a knife out in class and telling a teacher he wanted to kill himself when he was just 12 years old.

Sentamu was expelled from one school after threatening another child with a knife and in other incidents put girls in headlocks and threatened to stab a student with a pair of scissors.

While in foster care he threatened to harm a cat or chop off its tail, the court heard.

‘I can’t let this slide’

Weeks before he killed Elianne, who wanted to become a human rights lawyer, Sentamu said: “The real me is evil, dark and miserable” in a message to a friend.

The day before the attack, he had met Elianne and her friend, who had recently split up with him, at the Whitgift Centre, where the girls “teased” him and his ex-girlfriend splashed him with water.

Sentamu, who was studying sports science at Croydon College, later sent what police called a “chilling” message to a friend saying: “I can’t let this slide bro.”

He met Elianne, his ex-girlfriend and another of their friends the following day to swap belongings.

The girl handed him a plastic bag of his clothes, but he did not have her teddy bear as arranged, and Eliane snatched the bag back.

A Snapchat video shows Elianne smiling and laughing before her expression turned to “abject terror,” jurors were told.

Sentamu pulled the kitchen knife from his trousers and repeatedly stabbed her four times, plunging the blade 12cm into her neck.

‘He exacted vengeance on a girl running away’

Prosecutor Alex Chalk KC earlier told jurors Sentamu was “angry… having brooded on the insult and he took the knife to the scene to reassert dominance”.

“He exacted vengeance on a young girl clearly running away from him and posing no threat,” he said.

Sentamu, who was diagnosed with autism in 2020, did not give evidence.

His barrister Pavlos Panayi KC said it was not disputed the killing was a “grotesque overreaction” but the “central issue” in the case was Sentamu’s autism history and symptoms.

Metropolitan Police Detective Chief Inspector Becky Woodsford said it was a “violent, aggressive and frenzied knife attack on a young girl”.

“Elianne was doing what was right, she was standing up for her friend,” she added.

Senior Crown Prosecution Service prosecutor Samantha Yelland described it as a “tragic case” where “Elianne, who had her whole life ahead of her, was brutally murdered”.

“Our thoughts remain with her devastated family and friends who loved her dearly, as well as those who had to witness the shocking attack that morning,” she said.

“The evidence in this case was overwhelming, with clear CCTV footage showing Sentamu attacking Elianne. While Sentamu pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter, the evidence clearly showed this plea was unacceptable and we set to prove his responsibility for the murder.

“I am pleased the jury have agreed with our case that Sentamu was capable and had the mental capacity to be held responsible for the brutal murder of Elianne, which I hope will provide some comfort for those who now have to live a life without her.”