Pair facing life sentences after being found guilty of stabbing murder of 21-year-old Tcherno Ly during Chapeltown Carnival

Beni Nami and Hussein Semusu now face life sentences over the public stabbing of Tcherno Ly during the event on August 25 last year.

A jury of six men and five women took just over six hours to reach unanimous guilty verdicts to murder after a trial at Leeds Crown Court.

Nami, 20, of Nassau Place, Chapeltown, was also found guilty of possessing an offensive weapon.

Semusu, 21, of Grange Avenue, Chapeltown, was found not guilty of possessing an offensive weapon.

Both men will be sentenced by Mr Justice Cavanagh on Friday (December 11).

The defendants were told that life sentences are inevitable as they were returned to custody after the hearing.

Mr Ly died from a stab wound to his chest during the incident on Chapeltown Road as the area was packed with people.

Nami inflicted the fatal knife wound before fleeing the scene with his friend Semusu, who encouraged the stabbing.

The killing took place just over a fortnight after Mr Ly and Nami had fought with each other in the street during a separate incident.

During the trial at Leeds Crown Court Nicholas Lumley QC, prosecuting, said: "The Chapeltown Carnival, or Leeds Carnival, was in full swing when these two young men deliberately stabbed another young man, Tcherno Ly, on Chapeltown Road.

"The stabbing was quickly and forcefully achieved and so too was the death of Tcherno Ly, he could not have survived the attack."

Nami admitted being involved with Mr Ly in the moments around the killing and admitted punching him but denied responsibility for the murder.

The court was told Semusu was present when the killing happened..

The prosecutor said: "He was very close to the events and was plainly a part of them, encouraging Beni Nami, sharing his desire to cause serious harm to Tcherno Ly, if not kill him."

The stabbing took place near to Button Hill.

Mr Lumley said: "The actual stabbing cannot be seen on the (CCTV) footage. The precise roles, therefore, of these two men may never be known.

"What is clear, is that these two young men, quickly and together, slip away from the scene."

My Ly was already unresponsive by the time police and paramedics arrived on the scene.

He suffered a single stab wound to the left side of his chest which cut through major blood vessels.

Nami was also injured during the incident and his clothing had damage consistent with being damaged by a knife.

A knife was found at the scene which contained Mr Ly's DNA on the handle and Mr Nami's DNA on the blade.

Mr Lumley said the forensic evidence from the knife was consistent with the weapon being used by Mr Ly to injure Nami.

He said: "Tcherno Ly may not have been entirely innocent; there being no good reason to be armed in that way.

"But it has not, not yet at least, been suggested that either of these defendants had to stab Tcherno Ly in order to defend themselves, or others nearby.

A second knife was found at Nami's home on Nassau Place, Chapeltown.

It had been cleaned but Mr Nami's blood was recovered from the weapon by forensic officers.

Mr Lumley said it is the Crown's case that the weapon had been used to inflict the fatal injury.

When interviewed by police Nami told officers he had been approached by Mr Ly who asked him if he wanted to fight.

Nami said he punched Mr Ly twice after he swung at him.

Semusu said he was in Potternewton Park for much of the evening with his girlfriend.