‘Why don’t you help the police?’

A judge has slammed witnesses who refuse to help the police as two 17-year-olds were cleared of chasing a teenager down an alleyway and stabbing him to death.

Relatives of Abdullahi Tarabi, 19, sobbed at the Old Bailey as the teenagers were cleared after they claimed they acted in self defence.

After the pair were cleared Judge Nicholas Cooke said: ‘Very few people are prepared to help the police’ with murder cases.

‘Had somebody helped the police the outcome might have been different,’ he added.

Mr Tarabi was recorded on a CCTV camera shouting ‘Back the Ramsay’ – meaning bring a knife – as he ran for his life through a housing estate in Northolt, west London.

He suffering a fatal knife wound to the stomach which cut a major blood vessel and left part of his intestines hanging out.

Members of Abdullahi’s family, who live close to the scene, left court in tears as the video and audio footage was played at the Old Bailey.

Shortly before the not guilty verdicts were returned jurors asked if ‘we have to be unanimous in determining a verdict of self-defence’ in relation to one of the defendants.

Prosecutor Duncan Penny QC told jurors that the phrase ‘Back the Ramsay’ is ‘some sort of reference to the celebrity chef Mr Gordon Ramsay’.

‘In shouting “back the Ramsey” it would appear that Abdullahi was asking his friends or his brother for a weapon with which to defend himself from the imminent attack,’ he said.

Abdullahi had been with his friends and his older brother Abdirahman shortly before he was confronted near a roundabout at the junction of Whitton Avenue West and West End Lane.

Witnesses saw him being chased across the roundabout and down an alleyway towards Newnham Close.

One man, Tapiwa Shumba, saw Abdullahi turn around and put his hands up as he was caught by the attackers.

Mr Penny said: ‘The man with the knife raised his arm and brought the knife downwards towards Abdullahi.’

One of Abdullahi’s friends also saw one of the suspects stab the victim once in the belly with a black-tipped blade using an upwards motion.

A few seconds later the teenager collapsed in the arms of a local resident outside a house in Newnham Close.

After the attack the two suspects ran back towards the alleyway briefly chased by four men including Abdullahi’s brother.

Abdullahi died at hospital at 5.30pm.

The two 17 year-olds, who cannot be identified but are from Harrow, Middlesex, both denied and were cleared of murder.

ends