CCTV footage shows 16-year-old Nero McLean sprinting behind Junior Osborne before fatal attack

A CCTV clip shows the moment a 16-year-old boy sprinted down Narborough Road in Leicester with a large knife before killing a father by stabbing him in the back of the head. The knife severed Junior Osborne’s jugular vein and traveled down his body, striking his lungs.

Mr Osborne, 50, who had been stopped on the pavement on his bicycle, fell to the ground and died at the scene after being brutally attacked by Nero McLean. CCTV footage omits the moment of the knife attack, which was seen in full by a jury at Leicester Crown Court last month.

The trial ended in unanimous verdicts for 16-year-old knifeman Nero McLean, who was convicted of murder, and four others, including McLean’s twin brother Nevardo, who were all convicted of manslaughter. Nero McLean was today jailed for life with a minimum of 17 years behind bars and the others each sentenced to eight years for aiding and abetting the attack.

READ MORE: ‘Feral’ teenage brothers who killed Junior Osborne named for first time

The reason for the attack remains unclear. During today’s hearing, the judge, Mr Justice Neil Calver, said he rejected all the defendants’ claims during the trial, including that another man threatened to hurt them if they did not carry out the attack.

During the trial, the identities of the 16-year-old twins could not be reported by the media because of their ages. That restriction was lifted today after LeicestershireLive made an application to the judge, meaning their names and faces can now be published. It can also now be reported that all five defendants have previously been caught with police knives.

Leicestershire Police Detective Inspector Mark Parish, the senior investigating officer, said after today’s sentencing: “As I have said previously, I believe this was a planned and coordinated attack to kill Junior.

“Detectives from the Major Crime Squad must go to great credit and praise for the effort they put in to sift through hours of footage to identify the group, as well as our colleagues in uniform for their efforts both at the scene and in arresting all those involved , as investigations continued.

“We hope today’s result helps to boost public confidence in the Leicestershire team and the work we do to bring criminals to justice.”

During sentencing, Judge Calver told Nero McLean: “You stuck the knife in the right side of Junior’s throat. The force required was on the severe end, and by all accounts it was a brutal, cold-blooded killing that took him by surprise.

“A more cruel, more heartless crime is hard to imagine.”