A man who stabbed his love rival to death in a “brutal” attack with a zombie-style knife at a petrol station forecourt has been jailed for life.
Haseeb Majid, 22, was convicted of murdering Mohammed Duraab Khan on January 31 at a Texaco garage in Meadow Lane, Nottingham, by inflicting up to 16 wounds in 13 seconds.
Sentencing Majid at Nottingham Crown Court on Thursday, Judge Steven Coupland handed him a life sentence with a minimum term of 26 years.
The jury rejected Majid’s claim that he was acting in self defence and found him guilty after a three-week trial.
They had been told that the defendant “feared violence” from Mr Khan, 26, who had become reacquainted with Majid’s ex-girlfriend which caused “bad blood” between the men.
They heard that Mr Khan “threatened” his love rival during phone calls and by vandalising his car in the weeks leading up to the attack.
On the evening of the murder, Majid followed Mr Khan, who was a passenger in a black Audi, to the petrol station forecourt, where he approached the car wearing a balaclava.
Majid, of Wilford Crescent in The Meadows, Nottingham, claimed he intended to “scare” Mr Khan with the knife at the forecourt, but began the fatal attack when he “lost control” after the victim hit him on his wrist with a steering lock.
Prosecution barrister Michael Burrows KC told the court that Majid had acted with “brutal, lethal force”.
He said: “He covered his face to conceal his identity, he kept the knife hidden from those on the forecourt until the last moment. He would not need to do that if his intention was to merely frighten people away.”
Mark Heywood KC, defending Majid, said that there was a “mounting, escalating series of physical threats to Mr Majid” starting from January 7, “which supports and underscores” the defendant’s fear.
He added: “He concluded that when he saw the car, the Audi that is, just after six o’clock, that his impression was it was heading towards, or in the direction of, his home address and he thought that meant there was a threat to his family.”
Mr Khan’s father, Sarfraz Khan, who sat through the three-week trial, wrote a statement which was read to the court by Mr Burrows, calling his son his “best friend”.
He wrote: “Duraab was a remarkable person. A kind soul who always made everyone around him happy. Without him we are shattered.
“Having to bury my young son with dreams and ambitions because of this senseless violence has broken me. It is crucial that the defendant is held fully accountable for the devastation he has caused.”
In another statement read to the court, Mr Khan’s twin sister, Arshah Khan, wrote: “I’m just left as one half of a twin. I cannot fathom that he will not be a part of my future.
“Duraab was a kind, compassionate and loving individual. We wake up each day with the constant reminder that he is no longer with us.”
Judge Coupland said to the defendant, who was wearing a dark green tracksuit in the dock: “No sentence that I pass today can repair the loss you caused his family and friends.
“Your actions were brutal and deadly and the sheer number of wounds inflicted and the depth they penetrated the body shows your intention was to kill him.
“Duraab Khan’s behaviour was something you could not accept. You were acting as an aggressor at that stage, not out of need to protect yourself or your family. This was not a spontaneous act by you.
“You did not show the slightest remorse towards Duraab Khan for what you did. The only ones you feel sorry for are yourself and your family.”
Majid gave the judge a brief thumbs up before he left the dock.
