A teenager who tried to decapitate a 12-year-old is facing a life sentence after a jury convicted him of murder.

The Spine-Chilling Murder In England

Roberts Buncis of Boston, Lincolnshire, was brutally attacked by a 15-year-old who tried to sever his head and one of his hands.

One of the strikes caused the knife's blade to snap with the tip left embedded in Roberts' skull.

During the trial, pathologist Prof Guy Rutty stated that Roberts had 22 different injury sites on his body. The defendant also seemed to have tried to "remove the hand or fingers."

According to police, the defendant left a broken knife embedded in the victim's skull.

The Defendant Denied All Accusations

The defendant, who cannot be named due to the court's order, said in his evidence that he got excited by violence and claimed he lost control.

During his trial at Lincoln Crown Court, the defendant said they met up to exchange marijuana for money, but the defendant became angry when he did not get the £50 payment he expected.

He said Roberts produced a knife, but he grabbed it from him, repeatedly stabbed him, and cut his hand after losing control. He also said that Roberts made him get out of bed "for nothing."

"I just started laughing at him. I thought the way he was angry was way out of order," the defendant said. "As I was laughing, I just see this silver thing coming at me…I panicked and tried to grab the knife off him."

However, the prosecution said the defendant was lying as he brought the knife himself to the scene.

A prosecuting lawyer asked:

"You can't give any explanation as to why you stabbed him when he was on the ground and stabbed him again and again?"

The defendant, who had just turned 15, confessed manslaughter but denied murder, claiming that he had no intention of harming Roberts.

His story was dismissed by the jury, who found him guilty in over one hour.

Judge Jeremy Baker postponed the defendant's sentencing and remanded him in custody. He told the teen:

"Now that you have been found guilty of the murder of Roberts Buncis, in due course, the sentence will have to be imposed upon you."

"The type of sentence will be explained to you, but the actual sentence will have to be the subject of discussion between counsel on your behalf and myself."

"That will not take place today but in the future. You will remain in custody in the meantime."

Fear Caused The Murder

Latvian-born Roberts lived with his father Edgars within a short distance from where he was murdered. He was a student at the local Haven High Academy and was supposed to celebrate his 13th birthday only a few days after he died.

During the three-week trial, the jury learned that the defendant had a knife collection in his bedroom and had been kicked out of his elementary school for bringing a knife to class.

A fellow student informed the jury that the boy carried a knife regularly and would bring one to his secondary school. The defendant had been expelled from school for selling drugs at the time of the murder.

He had previously discussed a plan with Roberts to rob a shop with a knife and start a drug dealing business with that money.

The robbery never happened as Roberts described the plan as "too mad" and did not want to be involved.

Only five days before the murder, the defendant carried out a street attack on a young boy.

According to Mary Loram QC, the defendant wanted to become a cannabis dealer and feared that Roberts would snitch on him.

On the morning of December 12, 2020, Roberts' body was discovered in a wooded area along a footpath in the village of Fishtoft.

According to Miss Loram, Roberts was lured from his house at 3.30 a.m. to meet the defendant in a wooded area near Alcorn Green homes.

The teenager then started a savage attack on Roberts, inflicting more than 70 knife wounds in an attempt to cut off his head and one of his hands.

Miss Loram said that according to evidence, Roberts was attacked and then chased before he was murdered:

"He was stabbed to the head, to the back, neck, torso, legs, and arms and those injuries inevitably led to his death."

She added that the defendant messaged another teenager later in the day, saying, "Bro, I've done something bad."

He told him that "things went wrong" and "this wasn't supposed to go down like this."

The defendant was identified as a prime suspect based on messages found on Roberts' phone near his body.

As a result, the defendant's home and garden were searched.

Loram said, "In that garden under a pot was a knife. On that knife was the blood of Roberts and also of the defendant."

"A Nike top had been partially burned. There were some latex gloves. These had (the defendant's) blood on them. That must have been as a result of a significant cut he had to his hand. There was also Roberts' DNA on those gloves."

After the conviction, Lincolnshire police wrote a press statement urging every parent to talk to their kids about knives:

"There could be no stronger message than this on the potential devastation that carrying a knife can bring."

"Please think of Roberts, remember him, and make the right choices. If you, as a parent or a child, have any concerns about knives, please talk to us. We can all play a part in building a future free of such unnecessary and tragic loss of life."