The Express & Star talk to Detective Inspector Ade George about the murder of Harleigh Hepworth in West park, Wolverhampton.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Okay, so Westminster Police were alerted to a stabbing in West Park, Wolverhampton at about 16.20 hours on the Thursday the 7th of March 2024.
00:10That call came in from the ambulance service into Westminster Police that a male had been stabbed and was being treated by ambulance at the scene.
00:20I went out with my team, as did response officers were out there as well, and when we got there we tried to establish the facts of what had gone on.
00:30During the investigation, speaking to witnesses, looking at CCTV, phones etc, we established that Harley and his friend had travelled to Wolverhampton in order to meet the two offenders.
00:41Once there, they had messaged each other and been told given a location of where to meet, so a postcode.
00:49They met at that postcode and then from that postcode they were taken to West Park in Wolverhampton with a view to getting a lift somewhere else.
01:01It was quite clear as part of our case that this was a planned robbery and part of the reason for that was the place that they took them in West Park, a large park, lots of places to sit and be.
01:14They took them into probably one of the most secluded areas of the park where they said they would be waiting for this lift.
01:21As time went on and they were chatting and listening to some music, the two offenders asked to borrow Harley and his friend's mobile phones.
01:31It was during this period of time that they then logged into their own Snapchat accounts on Harley and his friend's phone and started to message each other.
01:41During those messages, they made reference to Dalik, which is a street taught for committing a robbery.
01:47I think that showed and was able to demonstrate to the court that what had happened was that this was two people trying to rob Harley and his friend of their mobile phones.
01:59In fact, during the time that they had Harley and his friend's mobile phones, there was a message put out by Esteryn offering a mobile phone for sale.
02:09Now, we can't say if it's the mobile phone that he got that he was referring to, but it's obviously a coincidence and part of that is what we presented to the court.
02:19During the time that they had possession of their mobile phones, towards the end, I think Harley and his friend started to become a little bit nervous, wondering why they'd got them for so long.
02:28And then actually they asked them for the PIN numbers of the phone and I think most teenagers will know then that that probably is an indication that those phones are going to be taken from you.
02:37They need the PIN numbers to be able to change, obviously, the settings.
02:41What happened then was Harley obviously tried to get his phone back.
02:45He was non-aggressive, he was non-violent, he asked for his phone back, he tried to get his phone back, but the offender wouldn't give him his phone back.
02:53As a result, he pulls out a large knife and stabs him once through the chest.
02:58Once he's been stabbed, he chases Harley a little bit and then before stopping, him and the other offender then stay with his friend, preventing him from getting to Harley.
03:12Harley runs off out of the secluded area onto the main path and towards the bridge that's in West Park where unfortunately he collapses.
03:21He's seen by members of the public who call the ambulance service and obviously try first aid themselves.
03:26But unfortunately, despite medical intervention, he was declared dead at the scene through a stab wound that went through his chest and through his heart.
03:37What we then see on CCTV is the two offenders and his friend walking around past Harley who's lying on the floor.
03:45And we were obviously able to demonstrate to the court that that was a little bit of intimidation.
03:50So they are walking with his friend, preventing him from getting to Harley before they then make off through the park.
03:56And then actually ditching the phones that they'd just stolen.
04:01Both then went on the run for a very short period of time.
04:05By the 8th of March, we identified both offenders.
04:08By the 9th of March, the principal offender was arrested and in custody.
04:13And by the 10th of March, the second offender was arrested.
04:16And with the evidence, we then were able to share with Crown Prosecution Service.
04:22We were then given authority to charge them both with murder.
04:27So there was obviously a little bit of a gap where obviously they went on the run.
04:29Was there any difficulties with the investigation process for this type of case?
04:36All cases such as this are quite complex.
04:38In terms of now, they're layered with not just your witnesses traditionally, but you've got CCTV and phone work, etc.
04:46And it was really that initial CCTV evidence.
04:51Then our officers were able to track them and track their locations.
04:55Then using phone data to be able to look at their interactions and possibly where they may have gone.
05:03Obviously, it's a really tragic incident what happened.
05:06It is, yes.
05:08Harley's family's got a bit distraught with it.
05:10West Midlands Police, obviously, they do support families like that.
05:13I mean, can we know how the family are keeping at the moment?
05:17I think they're relieved that the court case is over.
05:20No sentence and no result is going to bring Harley back.
05:25You'll have seen some of the comments they made post-conviction about Harley being,
05:29obviously, a loving grandson to his grandfather and brother.
05:34His girlfriend, obviously, that misses him as well.
05:38None of what we can do as West Midlands Police, we can only support them.
05:42We're not actually going to make things better for them, I'm afraid.
05:44They've still lost Harley.
05:46As I think as the granddad said, he was two weeks after his 17th birthday.
05:52He got his whole life ahead of him.
05:54They're not going to get to see him grow up.
05:56I think that's the tragedy of it all.
05:57It's obviously a very tragic thing for the family.
06:01Because Harley was a Rougie local, wasn't he?
06:04Yes.
06:05He's from Rougie.
06:05Do we know what sort of pretense Harley and his friend were given to come down to Wolverhampton?
06:10So, as we were presented in open court, Harley had, unfortunately, started trying to make money
06:18by selling drugs.
06:20And he was offered some work to sell drugs by the two offenders.
06:26Obviously, we believe, actually, that offer of work, that offer of doing that and earning money
06:31was actually not there.
06:32This was a planned robbery.
06:34Get people in from out of town and rob them because they don't really know where they are
06:39and what they're doing.
06:41There's no evidence to suggest that that was going to happen.
06:46That was the pretense, really, of them getting there.
06:47But we know, really, from messages from speaking to them, that Harley was a little bit nervous
06:50about it all.
06:55And a promise to a friend had decided to go along.
06:58Yes.
06:58I mean, this is Harley's, obviously, I believe, Harley, he didn't really have any money, many
07:03run-ins with law enforcement for this day.
07:05So, it's simply a team being dragged into a bad situation.
07:10And I think, in any case, regardless of someone's past history, nobody deserves to die in those
07:17circumstances.
07:18And it's not for somebody else to decide that they want to take someone's property.
07:21And if they won't get it, fatally stab them.
07:24So, the investigation process, I know we talked a little bit about it then.
07:28Obviously, like you said, they're extremely hard.
07:30Any case of this sort of type is very hard to investigate, I can imagine.
07:35What can you say about the investigation?
07:36Tell me the work that it did.
07:37So, my team, obviously, did a fantastic job, as did the first attending officers, the homicide
07:44team, the team that runs the manhunts for us.
07:47Everyone worked really, really hard over that first week, some really long hours.
07:52Because, actually, we've all got one central goal, which is to try and get justice.
07:54And we get that by, obviously, finding and identifying who's done it.
07:59And so, nobody stopped until those people were in custody, and then we got them charged.
08:04Fantastic.
08:05Is there any sort of final update into, final appeal at all into, obviously,
08:10anti-knife crime in the areas?
08:12I think, obviously, West Midlands Police runs Operation Guardian.
08:16And I think that, obviously, encompasses the response to violence and knife crime.
08:23And I think it's that literature and stuff like that,
08:25they'll be able to give you the information about the activities that we do.