A teenager has been sentenced to life in prison for murdering a 15-year-old girl after a row over a teddy bear in south London.
Hassan Sentamu was 17 when he killed Elianne Andam by stabbing her in the neck outside the Whitgift Centre in Croydon, south London, in September 2023.
At his Old Bailey trial, Sentamu admitted manslaughter but denied murder, claiming his autism spectrum disorder had caused him to lose control during a meeting with Elianne. But in January a jury found Sentamu, of New Addington, near Croydon, guilty of murder by a majority verdict.
On Thursday the judge, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb, sentenced Sentamu to life in prison with a minimum term of 23 years as he had taken a knife to the scene.
Addressing Sentamu, she said: “Elianne was 15 when you murdered her. She will always remain just 15, she will never realise the potential of her life. The pain of her loss to her parents and younger brother is indescribable.”
Cheema-Grubb noted that a mural had been painted for Elianne near where she was killed. She said: “Its presence marks the determination of the community as forcefully as they can – put the knives down.”
Sentamu had a history of attacking girls and had been cautioned about taking a knife to school, the trial heard.
He had been the boyfriend of Elianne’s friend, who cannot be named for legal reasons. After the relationship ended, Elianne accompanied her friend to meet Sentamu to swap personal possessions, including a teddy bear. When he failed to hand over the possessions that he held in a bag, a row broke out that ended in Sentamu fatally attacking Elianne as she tried to run away.
Sentamu’s ex-girlfriend told the court that during the row Elianne had grabbed the bag as a joke. Sentamu then chased her and stabbed her on the ground despite her pleas for him to stop, the court was told.
As he awaited trial, Sentamu had threatened to “do it again”, the court heard.
At this sentencing hearing it was also revealed that he attacked a child at Oakhill secure training centre while on remand.
The prosecutor Ben Lloyd said Sentamu punched the victim in the face, knocking him to the floor.
In mitigation, the defence barrister Pavlos Panayi KC said: “A crime as horrific as this leaves no real room for advocacy. There are no words that can possibly minimise, justify or excuse anything Hassan Sentamu did.”
Referring to Sentamu’s background, he said: “Hassan’s violent streak, his anger, his outbursts, did not come out of nowhere. He was not born with them. They come from his lived experiences from when he was a little boy.”
Panayi added: “He has enough good in himself to recognise and hate himself for it.” He cited suicide notes at the time of the murder.
Earlier at the hearing, Elianne’s parents, Dorcas and Michael Andam, urged the judge to impose the “strongest possible sentence”.
In a victim impact statement read to the court by Lloyd, Elianne’s mother said Sentamu was motivated by “greed and selfishness” and showed disregard for her daughter’s life.
Addressing Sentamu, she added: “Your actions were senseless, monstrous and evil. You left the scene without any remorse. Instead you tried to make excuses and cover your act with evil lies.
“You did not only kill Elianne, you killed me mentally and emotionally. We are left with nothing but pictures, videos. Your actions were senseless and evil.”
A statement from her father, which was also read to court, said his daughter taught him “how to love” and “how to be a dad”.
His statement added: “No parent should ever have to bury their child, let alone [one who has died] in such a violent manner.”
He added: “I could not protect her; that guilt will weigh on my heart for the rest of my life.”
