Huddersfield murder: Traumatised schoolboys speak out after witnessing fellow pupil Khayri McLean stabbed to death

Khayri McLean, aged 15, was killed after being attacked close to the entrance of North Huddersfield Trust School (NHTS) in Woodhouse Hill at 2.45pm on Wednesday, September 21.

The teenager was taken to Leeds General Infirmary but died a short time later.

A 16-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder.

NHTS pupils Alfie Wilkinson and Ruben Duncan-Keane left flowers at the scene with their mothers.

Rebuen, aged 12, said: “I’m traumatised – just seeing him there.

“I never thought it would be him.

“Just to think they’ve had the nerve to do it in broad daylight in front of so many people.

“There were families there, there were Year Sevens there who have only been here two weeks and now they’ve already seen something like this.

“It’s getting so bad to the point where if you go out of your area there’s a risk of you getting killed or stabbed just going to the park, it’s not right.”

Alfie, also aged 12, added: “We’d seen him about, a very popular guy. We’d never seen him without his friends or in an argument.

“He was a great student, a great kid and now he’s passed and he can’t see his mum no more.

“It’s just a shock.

"It’s traumatising, you wouldn’t imagine seeing it in real life.”

He added: “The world we live in. Something needs to change and it needs to change fast before more people lose their lives.

“Everyone’s got a weapon on them nowadays.

“If you get in a fight there’s no way out. If you get in a fight someone’s more likely to come and stab you or shoot you even.

“Once someone gets stabbed it spirals out of control.

“I’m staying close to home now every day so it doesn’t happen to me.”

Billy Shankland attended the scene with his son, a Year 7 pupil at the school, to lay flowers.

He said: “It’s awful, I’ve got a child within the same age group, I can’t imagine what the family’s going through.

“He didn’t know the boy, but he’s got friends who did. It’s a shock.

“It is very (concerning) because we don’t know if it’s targeted or random – for us, anything could be happening. It’s scary.”

Afiya Mahmood, 39, who lives opposite the school, said: “I could see the boy from the window, and the paramedics working on the child.

“There were a lot of paramedics, about 15 or 20, or that’s what it felt like anyway. Then they took him away.

“It’s very overwhelming, distressing. It’s shocking, it’s just a young boy isn’t it.”

Lucy Smith, who lives near the school, left a poem she had written on the railings outside the school.

She said: “I think we’re all in shock, I’ve got two teenagers roughly the same age and anyone with a family must be feeling shocked and saddened.

“It was really important for me to come here, when things like this happen, to do something that can just help us feel better when we are all feeling completely powerless in the face of violence and thinking about a family that must be falling apart today.”

Headteacher Andrew Fell said in a statement that NHTS had “lost a wonderful student from our school community”.

Mr Fell said in a statement: “It is with enormous sadness that I must tell you that following an incident on Woodhouse Hill Road yesterday, one of our pupils has tragically lost their life.

“The pupil was taken by ambulance to hospital after the incident but despite the most valiant of efforts, medical staff were unable to save their life.

“This is truly shocking news for our pupils, your children and our staff. We will be providing specialist support for any among our community who feel they could benefit.”

Senior investigating officer Detective Superintendent Marc Bowes said police have identified a number of witnesses to the incident.

“Our investigation is still at a very early stage, and we will be carrying out extensive inquiries to establish the full circumstances surrounding this incident that has resulted in the absolutely senseless loss of a young life,” he said.

“We recognise that an incident of this nature will cause understandable shock and concern in the community, and we are working closely alongside our colleagues at Kirklees District who are increasing their presence in the area to reassure people and keep them updated as our investigation progresses.

“We have already identified a number of witnesses to the incident itself but would still like to hear from anyone who has any information that could assist the investigation.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101 or online at www.westyorkshire.police.uk/101livechat, quoting crime reference 13220521713.