Small boat migrant jailed for 25 years after stabbing bank customer to death

The Somali national, who paid 400 euros to travel to the UK last year, was seen on multiple CCTV cameras attacking the victim with a black-handled kitchen knife which he had pulled from the waistband of his trousers.

Derbyshire Police said after the attack, Nur turned around and calmly walked out, staying in the bank for just 22 seconds.

Derby Crown Court heard Nur had called charity Migrant Help – which receives funding from the Home Office – less than two hours before the killing, saying he was “going to kill 500 people”.

The 47-year-old later suggested he was going to target “doctors, police or people working at the Home Office”.

Prosecutor Louis Malby KC said Nur also told the charity he would go live on social media to “talk about how rubbish the UK is”.

Judge Shaun Smith KC told the defendant the murder was a “brutal and callous act”.

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He added: “It was a real-life horror film for everyone connected to Mr Johal and everyone who had the misfortune of witnessing your wicked act.”

Nur had claimed asylum in October last year shortly after arriving in Britain but was rejected by the Home Office because he had arrived “voluntarily” – a decision he later appealed.

The court heard Nur was known to police in Italy, Germany, The Netherlands and Luxembourg when he arrived in the UK, including for offences such as assault and robbery.

CCTV of the killing was played to the court, with distressed family members of Mr Johal having to leave the room in tears.

After delivering the fatal blow, Nur, walked back to his home address, taking a route through Derby which included the Derbion shopping centre, with CCTV showing him turning the black and white jacket he was wearing inside-out as he went home in a bid to avoid detection.

He was identified shortly after through a CCTV image showing him wearing the jacket from a previous incident in the city a few weeks earlier.

Armed officers arrested him at his home address shortly before 7pm that evening.

In a interview, he told police he had started drinking at 8.30am on the day of the murder and couldn’t remember anything.

The killer has not given an explanation as to why he stabbed Mr Johal, known affectionately as Danny.

In a victim impact statement, the family of the 37-year-old said: “To the world he may have been many things: a devoted husband, a loving father, a cherished brother and a loyal friend.

“But to us, and to God, he was simply a good man. Our Gurvinder. Our light.

“The day Gurvinder was murdered, our lives didn’t just change—they shattered.

“Our home, once filled with laughter, warmth, and his joyful presence, is now suffocated by a silence so loud it hurts.”

“Gurvinder was kind, loving, and generous. He brought joy to everyone around him—his family, his friends, his community.

“That light has been stolen. And the person who did this will never understand the depth of the destruction they have caused. They are no man. They are nothing,” the statement added.

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“And to the one who did this—we pray that God shows you the same mercy you showed our son. May you, or your soul, never rest in peace.”

Nur was charged with Mr Johal’s murder on May 8 and went on to admit the offence at Derby Crown Court on August 21.

Detective Inspector Tony Owen, of Derbyshire Police, said: “Danny was everything to his family and friends – a much-loved husband, son, father and brother.

“For his life to have ended so suddenly and brutally in this way is not only devastating for his loved ones but also impossible for them to understand.

“Danny didn’t know Nur and there was no link between the two. He was simply going about his business when Nur attacked him.

“There is only one person who can say what happened on that day and yet, despite his guilty plea to murder, Nur has so far provided absolutely no explanation for his actions.

“This just serves to compound the grief felt by Danny’s loved ones and leave them with a lifetime of questions.”