Gordon Gault: Boy, 14, stabbed in Newcastle amid a background of 'tit-for-tat violence', court hears
Teenagers who stabbed a 14-year-old boy to death later celebrated what they had done, a court has heard.
Gordon Gault was stabbed with a machete in Newcastle's West End on 9 November 2022 and died six days later in hospital. Another youth, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was also stabbed.
The six accused now stand trial at Newcastle Crown Court over the incident with proceedings starting exactly a year after Gordon's death on Wednesday 15 November. They all deny murder and a charge of wounding with intent on the other alleged victim.
Jonathan Sandiford KC, prosecuting, said there was a clash and Gordon and another youth were stabbed amid a background of "tit-for-tat violence".
Outlining the case to the jury, he said some rap lyrics and notes written on some of the defendants’ phones would form part of the evidence in the trial, which could last six weeks.
Mr Sandiford told the court that Gordon and the other youth were attacked out of revenge for one of the defendants, Carlos Neto, now 18, being stabbed, some weeks before.
On the day of the fatal stabbing, his co-accused Benedict Mbala, also now 18, was assaulted outside his college, with a video clip of the attack being shared on social media.
Mr Sandiford said the defendants armed themselves with two machetes of the type used by the British Army Gurkha regiment, kitchen knives and a lump hammer.
He said there was a feud between the groups, and it “involved tit-for-tat violence and threats of violence before and after the stabbings”.
Gordon retrieved a metal baseball bat from some bushes and was seen on CCTV to be wearing blue latex gloves, to avoid leaving DNA or fingerprints, in the lead-up to the incident, Mr Sandiford said.
Neto then used a machete to stab Gordon in the arm and the blow severed vital blood vessels, the court heard.
The youth rode him away from the scene leaving a trail of blood. He was taken to hospital but died days later.
As they returned home, CCTV showed Neto appearing to re-enact the stabbing and “celebrate his killer blow”, the Crown said.
After Gordon died, two of the teens tried to destroy evidence by burning it but their attempt failed as they used vegetable oil, the court heard.
Mr Sandiford said the feud continued even after the teenager’s death, demonstrated by evidence recovered from suspects’ phones.
He said: “They continued to revel in what they had done writing rap lyrics to effectively celebrate their achievements in killing Gordon Gault and stabbing (the other teenager)."
Jurors were also shown a video of Mbala narrating what happened on the night, talking over Google Maps showing the location of the attack.
The prosecution case was that although Neto was the one who stabbed Gault, all six of the group were guilty as their presence emboldened and encouraged the others.
“It was just a matter of chance that he was the one who struck the fatal blow,” Mr Sandiford said.
The jury should also discount any claims by Neto that he was acting in self-defence, the prosecution said, as the teens had gone to the scene armed with weapons and expecting violence.
The defendants are: Mbala, of St John’s Walk, Newcastle; Neto, of Manchester Road East, Manchester; Daniel Lacerda, 18, of Paddock Close, Ferryhill, County Durham; Lawson Natty, 18, of Eastgarth, Newbiggin Hall Estate, Newcastle, and youths aged 17 and 16 who cannot be identified.
The trial continues.
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