A talented musician died after being stabbed in the chest by a mentally-ill 14-year-old girl who was known to sleep with a knife under her pillow and had stabbed her mother eight months earlier, an inquest has heard. Nimroy Hendricks, 24, was chased down a street and fatally attacked by the teenager in Crawley, West Sussex, in October 2020, collapsing on the road before being pronounced dead at the scene.
Coroner Penelope Schofield ruled at West Sussex Coroner’s Court that failings by Sussex Police and social services at West Sussex County Council may have contributed to the death of the “peaceful and loving” musician. The teenager, identified only as Child A due to court-imposed reporting restrictions, had been flagged as posing a “high risk” and was known to carry knives.
The inquest heard that just four days before the fatal attack, Child A had gone missing from home. When police found her at 2am, they left her with a woman who claimed to be her “cousin” but was actually a stranger with criminal convictions and known drug use, after failing to verify the relationship.
History of Violence Ignored
Eight months before killing Mr Hendricks, Child A had stabbed her mother in the leg, attempted to burn down her building, and assaulted police officers. Frederick Powell, the barrister representing the Hendricks family, told the court that the teenager had “been known to carry knives and on occasions slept with a knife under her pillow.
The girl, who lived with her mother after recently moving from Birmingham to West Sussex, was on a Child Protection Plan and had been diagnosed with PTSD and a split personality disorder. The hearing was told she had suffered a “turbulent” childhood, having been the repeated victim of sexual assault, sex abuse and child sexual exploitation.
Coroner Schofield criticised the police response when Child A went missing four days before the attack. The police did not physically attend the address given to them and therefore did not realise this person was not a relative,” she said, referring to the woman with whom officers left the vulnerable teenager at 2am.
Failed Safeguarding Measures
The coroner also highlighted that social services had failed to hold an emergency strategy meeting that had been organised when the child went missing. “There was no opportunity to put in place additional safeguarding measures,” Ms Schofield stated. “It is possible that had these matters been addressed, the perpetrator may not have been in a position to carry out the act which led to Mr Hendricks’ death.”
The inquest heard that Child A’s mother had told the Independent Office for Police Conduct that she had been advised by social services to stay away from her daughter. Mr Powell emphasised that “because the threat to him [Nimroy] was never properly assessed, he was never told he shouldn’t go to the property.”
Mr Hendricks, who was in a relationship with the girl’s mother, had gone to the flat to collect work tools when he discovered the interior had been “annihilated” following an outburst by the teenager. After finding the flat in disarray, he angrily banged on the girl’s bedroom door before leaving.
Fatal Confrontation
As Mr Hendricks made his way towards a nearby train station, Child A chased him down the street and confronted him. She stabbed him once in the chest before calmly walking away, telling a bystander: “I’ve stabbed Nim.”
Detective Constable David Symonds, who had left the girl with the woman claiming to be her cousin, was questioned about his decision. When asked why he believed the teenager at 2:15am despite knowing she had no family in the area, he responded: “I had no reason to doubt her.
The officer admitted there was no system for police to verify family relationships, stating: “The only way is if someone manually puts that in the police systems.
Parents Demand Accountability
Speaking after the inquest, Nimroy’s parents, Nimroy Hendricks Snr and Lisa Hendricks, said their son had been failed by authorities. “Nim should never have been put in the position he was. The authorities were well aware of the risk posed by the child,” Lisa Hendricks said.
She accused the police and social services of trying to cover up their errors, adding: “The impact on the family had been shattered by his death.”
Mr Hendricks Snr was more direct in his criticism: “The police and authorities failed, they failed in every sense of the word.
Systemic Failures Exposed
The inquest revealed that Child A had a social worker, youth justice worker, psychologist and neighbourhood police officer allocated to her case. Despite this multi-agency involvement, Mr Powell argued that “Nim was overlooked. He was never told of the risk this child posed. He was in a blindspot due to the failure of examining what was known.”
Rachel Cleaves, the girl’s West Sussex Youth Justice Service officer, told the coroner she was “particularly worried about the circumstances in which she’d ended up in West Sussex” and that the teenager was in unsuitable accommodation. However, when asked if more could have been done to prevent the killing, she replied: “No.”
The teenager, who had a long criminal record, was later judged to be suffering from a “significant abnormality of mind” and pleaded guilty to manslaughter on grounds of diminished responsibility in 2022. She was sentenced to five years in custody and four years on extended licence.
Mother’s Tribute
Paying tribute to her son, Lisa Hendricks described Nim as “a hugely loving child and man and a talented musician” who was “deeply caring and so kind.” She said the family had not only lost their son but their best friend.
The grieving mother expressed particular anguish about her son’s final moments: “When somebody sticks a knife into your son’s heart and kills him… I’ve had to read everything. Because you wonder how he spent his time in that last moment – after he knew he’d been stabbed and after he was bleeding out and he was dying.”
Wider Concerns
The Hendricks family warned that without systemic change, more people would be killed by violent children. Lisa Hendricks referenced the recent Southport attack by 17-year-old Axel Rudakubana, saying: “Since Nim’s been killed, there has been a raft of children who are running around killing people. Far more serious interventions need to be put in place when they begin to flex those very, very dangerous muscles.”
Sussex Police acknowledged the inquest conclusion but maintained that the Independent Office for Police Conduct investigation “found no evidence of wrongdoing or misconduct by the force.” West Sussex County Council said it would “reflect upon” the coroner’s findings.
The case has raised serious questions about inter-agency communication, risk assessment procedures, and the protection of vulnerable individuals who may be unknowingly exposed to dangerous young people with histories of violence.
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