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Areece Lloyd‑Hall Convicted of Murdering Harry Pitman at Primrose Hill on New Year’s Eve

Sentencing is scheduled for 10 November at the Old Bailey following a retrial.

Overview

  • An Old Bailey jury returned an 11–1 majority guilty verdict after nearly eight hours of deliberation, following an earlier trial that failed to reach a verdict.
  • Pitman, 16, was stabbed once in the neck and died minutes before midnight, with phone footage capturing the sheath flying through the air during the attack.
  • Forensic testing found Lloyd‑Hall’s DNA on a knife sheath recovered at the scene, though the blade was never found.
  • Lloyd‑Hall, now 18, admitted carrying the knife but denied intending to kill, claiming he thought he struck with the sheath and citing self‑defence and cannabis‑induced paranoia.
  • He remains in custody and faces a potential life sentence, with the case underscoring concerns over youth knife violence at crowded public celebrations.