Knifeman admits killing graduate in Birmingham city centre stabbing spree

Zephaniah McLeod entered pleas at Birmingham Crown Court on Monday in connection with the spate of stabbings in the early hours of Sunday September 6 last year, as the city was packed with revellers.

McLeod, who appeared in court over a video link from Ashworth Hospital wearing a white T-shirt and dark blue zip-up top, spoke to confirm his name and say he understood proceedings, before entering pleas.

In addition to the charge of manslaughter, McLeod pleaded guilty to four counts of attempted murder and three charges of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

The 28-year-old, of Nately Grove, Selly Oak, had been in custody since being charged with committing the attacks, which happened in the space of 90 minutes.

Jacob Billington, a Sheffield Hallam University graduate intern and drummer, was fatally stabbed in the neck, during the spree.

The 23-year-old, from Crosby, Merseyside, was among eight people stabbed during the attacks which triggered a major emergency services response.

Mr Billington's mother was in court and his father dialled in to the video-link to hear the pleas, while family members from a number of the other victims also listened in to the proceedings.

Seven others were injured in four clusters of attacks across the city centre, including Mr Billington's old school friend and bandmate Michael Callaghan.

The court heard McLeod had suffered with paranoid schizophrenia at the time.

Prosecutor Karim Khalil QC told the court the guilty and not guilty pleas were acceptable to the prosecution.

He said: "The psychiatrists instructed by both the Crown and the defence concluded in agreement with one another that the defendant clearly suffered from a condition of paranoid schizophrenia at the time of the material events.

"It was unquestionably a condition which affected his ability to understand all that was going on."

The Recorder of Birmingham Judge Melbourne Inman QC said of the stabbings: "There are many people touched and affected by the case.

"The hearing this morning may appear to be disproportionately short given the very grave seriousness of the case.

"But it's quite clear that the Crown and the defence have given very careful expert consideration of the evidence."

West Midlands Police have said the first attack was shortly after midnight, when a 33-year-old man was stabbed in the neck in Constitution Hill. Twenty minutes later a 25-year-old woman was stabbed to her shoulder in Livery Street and, minutes after that in Barwick Street, a 29-year-old man was left in a critical condition with a chest wound.

Detective Chief Inspector Jim Munro said CCTV operators immediately began exploring footage to find the suspect and track his movements.

At 1.50am that McLeod launched his next attack in Irving Street on a group of school friends from Liverpool who were returning to their hotel after a night out while visiting one of their group who was studying in Birmingham. Sadly 23-year-old Jacob Billington, a graduate trainee at Sheffield Hallam University, was fatally stabbed and his close friend, also 23, critically injured.

CCTV evidence showed McLeod leaving Berwick Street and dumping his knife down a drain, before catching a taxi home to Nately Grove, Selly Oak. There he re-armed himself and returned to the city centre again to continue his attacks.

Det Ch Insp Munro said: “The number of CCTV cameras across the city is significant and took an immense amount of co-ordination, however not all of the incidents were covered by cameras. We were able to match the clothing McLeod wore to witness and victim descriptions, to identify him and he was arrested from his home address 24 hours later.

“McLeod has never given an explanation for his actions that night which leaves no closure for his victims or their families and friends, although I am pleased that the admission of his crimes has spared those involved the ordeal of a trial.

“In accepting his pleas of wounding, attempted murder and particularly manslaughter for the deeply distressing death of Jacob, we have consulted all those involved fully and they understand why this decision has been reached.”

After his death, Mr Billington's family described him as "the light of our life".

In a tribute released in September last year, the family said: "Jacob was the light of our life and we have been devastated by his loss.

"He was a funny, caring and wonderful person who was loved by every single person he met. He lit up every room with his boundless energy and witty humour and the loss of such a special person will be felt by all who knew him for years to come."

Sheffield Hallam University, where the 23-year-old studied and worked, also paid tribute to his "warmth and enthusiasm".

Mr Billington graduated from the Yorkshire university in 2018 before joining the library as a graduate intern where he became "a greatly valued member of the team".

McLeod will be sentenced in September.