A teenager will spend 18 years behind bars after he attacked a stranger with a 10-inch ‘zombie knife’ at Notting Hill Carnival.
Rumarni Tuitt, 19, from Walthamstow, north-east London, stabbed 18-year-old Kamani Spooner with the deadly weapon on the evening of August 24 last year.
He was found guilty of attempted murder back on May 8 following a two-week trial at the Old Bailey.
Sentencing him on Friday, Judge Judy Khan KC said it was a ‘brutal and wholly unjustifiable attack and that there was no justification for carrying a knife of that nature on to crowded streets.
‘This was a particularly serious offence committed in the heart of Europe’s biggest street festival,’ she added.
In a witness statement for the police, Mr Spooner said he spent much of the day drinking with his friends and enjoying the carnival before the horrific assault unfolded.
‘Towards the end of the carnival, he [Mr Spooner] could hear shouting coming from somewhere and he realised he was somehow in the middle of it,’ prosecutor Mark Paltenghi told jurors.
‘He then saw people fighting around him – three of them were quite close, they were throwing punches.
‘He then recalls being hit in the back and upon looking at his arm, saw it had been cut, then looked down and saw that his intestines were hanging out. He put his hand over them and just ran.
Mr Tuitt also stabbed Mr Spooner four more times to the side and the back and caused a laceration to his right forearm.
Officers arrested Mr Tuitt immediately after the attack and were able to provide vital medical treatment to his victim until paramedics could reach them.
Despite having his stomach sliced open, Mr Spooner miraculously survived his injuries thanks to life saving surgery.
The zombie-style knife used, described by police as ‘at least 10 inches in length’, was recovered from the scene.
‘Zombie-style’ is the street name given to weapons which are over eight inches in length and often have a serrated edge, spikes or more than two sharp points.
During his trial in May, the court heard that Mr Tuitt and Mr Spooner did not know each other.
Mr Tuitt said that he was acting in self defence but the jury rejected his claim.
Acting Detective Inspector Sophie McLoughlin, who led the investigation, said: ‘This was a savage and senseless attack. The victim was very lucky to survive his injuries.
‘Hundreds of thousands of people, including the victim in this case, go to Carnival to have a good time and enjoy the music and entertainment.
‘Those who would choose to turn up armed with a 10 inch zombie knife clearly have no such intentions.
‘It is thanks to the vigilance of officers on duty that day and the hard work of my team in the months since that we were able to build the case that saw Tuitt convicted at court.
‘It is also thanks to officers’ immediate medical intervention at the scene, as well as the specialist further care by paramedics, that we’re talking about a conviction for attempted murder and not worse.
‘I hope the victim can now move forward and begin to put this experience behind him.’
