Teen who murdered schoolboy Harvey Willgoose with hunting knife jailed for at least 16 years
Mohammed Umar Khan, 15, was found guilty of murder in August.
The 15-year-old boy who murdered teenager Harvey Willgoose at All Saints Catholic High School, in Sheffield, has been named by a judge.
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Mohammed Umar Khan was found guilty of murder in August.
He was named by the judge during the sentencing on Wednesday October 22 after previously having his identity withheld from the public due to his age.
Today, Khan was jailed for a minimum term of 16 years.
Sheffield Crown Court heard how other pupils fled “in fear and panic”, some locking themselves in a school cupboard, after the fatal attack at All Saints Catholic High School in Sheffield on February 3.
Read more: Mother of Harvey Willgoose says she feels sorry for son's killer but demands tough sentence
Sentencing judge Mrs Justice Ellenbogen said there were records which showed Mohammed Umar Khan had an “inability to manage” his anger.
Khan showed no reaction as he stood in the dock at Sheffield Crown Court for his sentencing.
Referring to a visit by a police officer at Khan’s home in December 2024 after his mother found photographs of him posing with weapons, the judge said: “He advised you about the dangers of carrying weapons, advice which you ignored.
“Prior to February 3, 2025, there had been at least one other occasion on which you had been in possession of a weapon, a knife, on school premises, captured in a video clip and in photographs.
“Notwithstanding all of this, throughout your trial, you sought to minimise the extent of your interest, and gave explanations for the way in which photographs of weapons had come to be on your phone which were, put simply, not believable.
“Over the period spanning November 2024 and January 2025, there had been three separate incidents in which you had become angry and aggressive towards a person and/or property at school.
“Other records indicate your longstanding inability to manage your anger.”
The jury was shown CCTV footage of the incident which showed how Harvey was stabbed twice.
One of these blows cut through one of his ribs and pierced his heart.
Jurors heard how immediately after the stabbing Khan told All Saints’ headteacher Sean Pender: “I’m not right in the head. My mum doesn’t look after me right.”
The school’s assistant head, Morgan Davis, took the knife off Khan and heard him say “you know I can’t control it”, which the teacher took to be a reference to his anger issues, given previous incidents of violent behaviour at school.
The jury was told how Harvey and Khan fell out following an incident in the school five days before the fatal stabbing, on January 29.
On that day, Khan tried to intervene in an altercation involving two other boys and had to be restrained by a teacher.
When he claimed one of these boys had a knife, a lockdown was declared and police were called, although no weapon was found.
Harvey was not at school that day and stayed off for the rest of the week, texting his dad: “Am not going in that school while people have knives.”
Over the weekend before the stabbing on Monday morning, Harvey and Khan fell out on social media, with each siding with a different boy involved in the lockdown incident.
When Khan returned to school on Monday February 3, he was asked by Mr Davis whether he had anything he should not and said he did not.
The jury has heard about a series of encounters between Harvey and Khan that morning before Khan pulled out the knife and used it just after the start of the lunch break, which began at 12.10pm.
The court was shown images and video found on Khan’s phone which captured him posing with knives and other weapons, and was told how he had used search terms relating to weapons on the internet.
Khan told the court how he decided to carry a knife for protection as he feared other teenagers whom he believed were carrying weapons.
His barrister Gul Nawaz Hussain KC told the jury that Khan “snapped” after years of bullying and “an intense period of fear at school”.
Since Harvey’s death, his family have campaigned against knife crime, with a particular focus on getting knife-arches into schools.
After Khan was convicted, Harvey’s sister Sophie Willgoose said outside court: “Harvey was full of life, warm, funny and caring with a unique ability to bring people together.
“He was deeply loved by his family, cherished by his friends, and respected by all who knew him.”
She went on to say: “This tragedy has not only devastated our family, but has rippled across the country. People everywhere continue to grieve the loss of our beautiful boy.”