Five men have been jailed after gang violence broke out at a busy shopping centre, as detectives warn there’s no let-up in their efforts to tackle knife crime.
Violence flared when two rival groups bumped into each other in a chance meeting at the Nike shop at Resorts World.
Samba Faal and Christ Lidiu were in the shop when Damel Lebert, Shyieme Lynvest and Raseante Spencer-Hamilton walked in.
The three backed off as Faal and Lidiu confronted them in the doorway, with Lynvest appearing to show the rival group an area where he had a knife.
The confrontation turned and Faal was punched, falling to the floor unconscious before Hamilton and Lebert jump on him.
CCTV shows Lidiu lash out with a knife at Hamilton, leaving him with a 30cm slash wound to his arm which cut down to the bone.
Lynvest is stabbed in the back during the violence by Lidiu.
The men flee, with Lynvest seen on CCTV dropping his knife in an outside drain.
After a major investigation by the Birmingham Organised Crime & Gangs Team, the five were identified from CCTV and were charged with violent disorder following the trouble, on 6 September last year.
At Birmingham Crown Court:
Faal, 21, of Coventry, was found guilty and jailed for two years in June.
Lidiu, 20, of Walsall, was found guilty of violent disorder and using a knife to make threats and was jailed for 30 months last Tuesday.
Lebert, 23, of no fixed address, was jailed for 20 months last Tuesday.
Lynvest, 22, of Birmingham, was jailed for two years and three months in June after admitting the offence.
Spencer-Hamilton, 21, of Staffordshire, was jailed for two years in June.
Chief Inspector Phil Cape, who heads the team, said: “This was a really violent incident in a shopping centre, while families are seen on CCTV clearly trying to enjoy a day out. I’d like to thank the members of the public who came forward to help with the investigation, and the officers who quickly recovered this footage.
“Yet again, we have young men who are now spending time behind bars because they thought it was acceptable to carry a knife. It never is.
“We’ll continue to arrest people and disrupt gang activity in Birmingham, while working with other organisations to help young people at risk of falling into that lifestyle.
“And our work to tackle the wider issue of knife crime continues, with dedicated patrols, and work to educate young people of the risks they face when they decide to pick up a blade.
“We want young people to know that there is a better way, but that if they choose to go down that path, they can expect to be arrested and jailed.”