Christopher Barry murder: 13-year-old boy, detained for 11 years

A 13-year-old boy has been detained for at least 11 years after murdering a man in a row about a party in north London.

The boy, who cannot be named, admitted stabbing 53-year-old Christopher Barry in the chest in The Broadway, Edmonton on 14 December last year.

The Old Bailey heard Mr Barry argued with a group of youths trying to get into a party in his block of flats. He was followed inside and attacked.

The court heard the boy had been in a gang since the age of 10.

The boy and his friends had left a 13th birthday party and had returned later but went to the wrong block of flats, the court heard.

When they were trying to access the flats they came across Barry, known as Jack, who refused them entry causing some “pushing and shoving” between them.

Barry had been returning home when he was stabbed by the 13-year-old boy

The boy followed Barry into the lift and pulled a kitchen knife from his rucksack and said: “What you saying now? What you saying now?” before stabbing him twice.

The Old Bailey was told Barry had not realised he had been injured and returned to his flat where he later collapsed. He was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.

The prosecution said the boy had previously been warned about handling knives and described the murder as a “cowardly and unprovoked attack” over a “trivial dispute”.

During the hearing, Barry’s girlfriend, Sabrina Finn, who was with him at the time, said her “heart was broken” following Barry’s death and “life would never be the same again”.