‘I feel like my case is evil’: Balaclava-clad teen admits needing ‘anger releasing’ in chilling confession after leaving 80-year-old to die with broken neck
A teenage thug who brutally beat an 80-year-old grandfather to death in a Leicester park has been jailed for seven years – while his 13-year-old accomplice who filmed the attack while laughing walked free from court with just a community order.
The shocking sentences were handed down today at Leicester Crown Court, where harrowing details emerged of how Bhim Kohli was slapped in the face with a slider shoe, kicked and punched by the masked 15-year-old boy before being left to die just yards from his home.
The girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, filmed the September 1 attack on her phone while encouraging the violence and laughing as the beloved grandfather lay dying with a broken neck and fractured ribs in Franklin Park, Braunstone Town.
In extraordinary scenes at court, Mr Kohli’s devastated daughter Susan revealed how her gentle mother had been driven to such despair that she wished the teenage killers could suffer the same fate as her husband.
SEVEN YEARS FOR A LIFE
The 15-year-old boy, who was cleared of murder but convicted of manslaughter in April, was sentenced to seven years in custody – meaning he could be free before his 20th birthday.
The 13-year-old girl received a youth rehabilitation order of three years, allowing her to remain in the community under supervision rather than facing any time behind bars.
The lenient sentences come despite prosecutor Harpreet Sandhu KC telling the court there was “deliberate humiliation” of Mr Kohli during the attack, with the boy acting “out of anger” in violence that “carried a high risk of death.
‘I KINDA JUST NEEDED ANGER RELEASING’
In a chilling letter written two months after the killing, the boy confessed: “I feel like my case is evil” and admitted “I accept I did it and I am doing time.
Most disturbingly, he wrote: “I kinda just needed anger etc releasing” – revealing the casual brutality behind the senseless attack on an innocent pensioner walking his dog Rocky.
The court heard how the pair had bragged about the attack afterwards, with CCTV capturing them joking to friends. In one sickening exchange, a male voice says “He whacked his head off a log” before the girl replies “Oh I know, I saw that – it goes ‘doosh'” while making a gesture with her head.
FAMILY’S HEARTBREAK: ‘HAUNTED’ BY WHAT-IFS
Mr Kohli’s grandson Simranjit told the packed courtroom he was “haunted” by thoughts he could have saved his grandfather if he’d reached him sooner after hearing his cries for help.
My grandad was one of the most important factors of my life,” he said in a victim impact statement that left many in tears.
Susan Kohli described finding her “frail” father screaming in agony: “He was in so much pain, he was screaming out. It was horrendous, and we have never seen him like this.”
We thought he would go to Leicester Royal Infirmary and be fine. We never imagined he would never return home,” she said, revealing how the family watched helplessly as he died “before our eyes, surrounded by his family who were in floods of tears and disbelief.
TARGETED ATTACK
The court heard damning evidence that the girl had photographed Mr Kohli on her phone a week before the attack and pointed him out to the boy in the park, suggesting he had been deliberately targeted.
Police also recovered a video from her phone showing the group “confronting” an unknown man on a separate occasion, who was hit to the back of the head and called a “P*** bastard” while she laughed – revealing a pattern of racist violence.
The attack began with the boy, wearing a balaclava, slapping Mr Kohli in the face with his slider shoe while the pensioner was on his knees. The girl zoomed in with her camera before the violence even began, proving she knew what was coming.
‘UTTERLY DISGUSTING’ KILLERS
Detective Chief Inspector Mark Sinski said Mr Kohli was a “much-loved grandfather” who grew vegetables for his neighbors, many of whom called him “grandad” as a term of affection and respect.
He was enjoying the simple things in life such as spending time with his family, tending to his allotment and walking his dog,” the detective said.
The victim’s daughter Susan said: “My dad was brutally and cruelly taken away from us when walking our dog Rocky in the park close to our home. He was a devoted life partner to my mum for 55 years.”
ORGANS COULDN’T BE DONATED
Adding to the family’s anguish, Mr Kohli’s organs could not be donated as he had wished because his death was part of a criminal investigation.
“It pains me we were unable to meet his wishes,” his daughter said.
The widow of 55 years has been left so traumatized that she told her family she wished the teenage killers could be “subjected to the same treatment they gave her husband to see how they feel.
JOINT ENTERPRISE
Both teenagers were prosecuted under the principle of joint enterprise, with the Crown Prosecution Service determining they were both criminally responsible for Mr Kohli’s death but with different roles.
Kelly Matthews, Senior District Crown Prosecutor for CPS East Midlands, said: “Mr Kohli was a much-loved family man and his loss is felt keenly by those close to him.”
The boy was described as the principal offender whose actions directly caused death, while the girl’s encouragement and filming made her part of the attack, though prosecutors said there wasn’t enough evidence to show she could have foreseen the fatal outcome.
AMAZING MAN WHO LOVED LIFE
Mr Kohli was described by his family as “fit as a fiddle” – an amazing man who loved life, never took himself too seriously, and was “good fun to be around and very chatty.
The retired businessman had been married for 55 years and was a loving dad, grandad, brother and uncle who was just yards from his home when the callous teenagers struck.
As the teenagers were led from court – the boy to begin his sentence and the girl to walk free – Mr Kohli’s family were left to face a lifetime without the man they described as someone who “loved life” and brought joy to all who knew him.
The case has raised serious questions about youth violence and whether sentences for teenage killers truly reflect the devastating impact of their crimes on victims’ families.
