The family of teenager Alfie Lewis who was knifed through the heartwith a six-inch long kitchen knifeare 'disappointed' at his killer's sentence
The 15-year-old was murdered in a 'senseless' attack in full view of pupils leaving a primary school in the Horsforth area of Leeds last November.
Bardia Shojaeifard, 15, has been detained for life with a minimum term of 13 years for Alfie's murder, with the judge, Mr Justice Cotter, saying he had planned the attack in 'revenge' for an altercation between the two boys a week earlier.
In a statement released after the sentencing hearing, Alfie's 'broken' family said their 'lives had been forever changed' following the youngster's death and advocated for a change in the law to stop the 'senseless' killing of young people.
Alfie's mother Heather Lane also told Shojaeifard she would 'never ever forgive' him, adding that 'no sentence will ever be enough' for his crimes.
Alfie Lewis (pictured), 15, was murdered in a 'senseless' attack in full view of pupils leaving a primary school in the Horsforth area of Leeds last November
Bardia Shojaeifard was today convicted of Alfie's murder and wasdetained for life with a minimum term of 13 years
Alfie Lewis and his mother Heather Lane. Today, Ms Lane told Shojaeifard she would 'never ever forgive' him, adding that 'no sentence will ever be enough' for his crimes
Alfie's family said in a statement: 'Knife crime is an epidemic affecting our youth, even when they are innocent as Alfie was. Our efforts now must go on trying to influence the changes which are needed to the law to stop our babies being killed so senselessly.
'Alfie, your absence is felt every second of every day and our lives are forever changed by what has been taken from us. We will never be complete again. We are broken.
'All we can do now is speak your name every day, spend our time reminiscing on the joy you brought us, and live with the aching hearts that we are left with. You brought joy and happiness to us every day with your jokes, stories, dancing and kindness.'
Addressing the defendant directly as she read her victim impact statement in court, Alfie's mother Heather Lane said: 'No sentence will ever be enough for what you have done. I will never ever forgive you.'
Ms Lane said: 'Alfie was my youngest son, my baby boy, my little mate. He was the third corner or our little family's triangle which is now broken.
'He was my beautiful, kind baby boy and I was so proud of him. We laughed, danced and smiled, we loved each other for 15 years and I thought we would for the rest of my life.
'Some of the things I miss the most are the simply everyday things. I miss his kisses in the morning, goodnight and all of the ones in the middle, his jokes and amazing massive smile and the love he showed me every day. It's unbearable not to have that now.
Alfie Lewis was stabbed to death 'in full view' of pupils leaving a primary school in the Horsforth area of Leeds last November
Police at the scene where Alfie died last November
Floral tributes left on a bench near where Alfie Lewis was stabbed to death in Horsforth, Leeds, in November last year
'Alfie used to call me every hour when he was out with his friends talking rubbish. I'd do anything for that phone call now.
'Our house was filled with Alfie and his friends. He goes out at 2.40 in the afternoon and he's murdered.
'I can't accept what happened as the pain is too much. I don't know how to live without him and I don't want to. The impact Alfie had in our lives is hard to describe and because of these horrific senseless actions, so many people have been affected.
'Alfie would never use or never had any kind of weapon because I brought him up better than that. He was my heart and when he was stabbed in the heart it killed me too.'
In a statement read to the court, Alfie's older brother Anthony Lewis said he was his 'loving and caring little mate' who 'never deserved what happened to him'.
He said: 'I've had sleepless nights hearing mum crying herself to sleep. I'm left dealing with the most important person in mine and Alfie's lives completely broken to bits.
'I miss Alfie's 12 phone calls again, the nights we stayed up playing Fifa together, his smile, his loving and caring, his annoyingness, everything.'
During his sentencing remarks, Mr Justice Cotter called knives a "dangerous obsession" and Patrick Green, chief executive of the Ben Kinsella Trust, agreed that some young people are obsessed with knives.
Mr Justice Cotter also said people would be wondering how a young boy 'from a loving and supportive family' could commit such an 'extraordinary' crime 'without forewarning or any warning signs save for some pictures of knives on his phone'.
Alfie was stabbed to death a six-inch long kitchen knife that Shojaeifard had brought from home
CCTV footage of Alfie Lewis (pictured) walking down a street in Horsforth moments before he was stabbed to death
But Mr Green told PA it is 'not uncommon' to see young people who are considered 'well adjusted' being drawn into knife crime.
He said: 'Going back to the case with Alfie Lewis, just because young people may not be outwardly causing concern doesn't mean that they haven't adopted dangerous beliefs that can bring them into situations such as this.
'That's why educating all young people early about the dangers of knife carrying is so important.'
The Ben Kinsella Trust offers knife crime prevention workshops to teach young people about its dangers.
The CEO said there will be 'many and varied reasons' why young people do not feel safe, including their own concerns about knife crime, but the research shows 'there isn't enough being done to talk to young people and reassure them about positive ways to stay safe'.
Earlier this month, the national lead for policing knife crime, Commander Stephen Clayman, said the accessibility of knives online is 'a really concerning picture' for law enforcement.
Mr Green said knives are more accessible than ever to young people, and called for tighter restrictions on online marketplaces selling weapons.
'We're seeing a flood of knives in society at the moment because they're easy to obtain,' he said.
'It's never been easier for a child to buy a knife than it is now through online marketplaces and we're even coming across case studies where we're seeing young people selling knives, doing this as an active business, so buying the knives and then selling them on to other young people.'
Mr Green explained that online marketplaces have little or no age verification, are selling the weapons at reasonably cheap prices - with machetes and zombie knives sometimes selling for around £20 - and can deliver purchases to someone's door the next day.
He added: 'There is no limit to your possibility of buying a knife and that's why we need not only the legislation to change but also mechanisms whereby marketplaces are held to account and it becomes as difficult to buy a knife as it is in the high street - you have to have ID, you have to prove your age - that needs to be in place on online sales as well.'
The charity CEO said legislation to ban machetes and zombie knives needs to go further and ban swords.
