The father of a teenager who was hacked to death with a machete has revealed the heartbreaking moment he learned his son had been murdered by two 12-year-old boys.
Speaking ahead of the sentencing, Suresh Seesahai, who appeared emotional as he sat with his wife, held back tears to recount the moment he heard the news.
The two young killers, who have now been sentenced, became Britains youngest convicted murderers since the killers of James Bulger and were today ordered to be detained in secure accommodation at His Majestys pleasure for a total of 17 years.
The youths were found guilty of hacking teenager Shawn Seesahai to death with a 16-inch machete in an unprovoked attack in a Wolverhampton park last November.
Suresh Seesahai said: It hit me so hard I didnt really know what to do next.
Shawn Seesahai, 19, was stabbed in the heart and suffered a skull fracture last November
Shawns parents reveal the heartbreaking moment they learned their son had been murdered ahead of his killers sentencing
Shawn Seesahai stumbled as he tried to flee from the boys in Wolverhampton, the court heard
I took the phone and asked "what happened to Shawn"?
I said is Shawn ok and they said "no, Shawn passed away".
He will always will be remembered because he has a father a mother and a sister.
Mother Maneshwary Seesahai also explained how Shawns sister had been deeply affected by the ordeal.
She said: Shes crying that he doesnt have a brother anymore - and that affects us a lot when she says things like that.
She continued: I can’t see my son married. I can’t see any grandchildren it’s very hard.
Mother Maneshwary Seesahai explains how Shawns sister had been deeply affected by the ordeal
Speaking ahead of the sentencing, Suresh Seesahai, who appeared emotional as he sat with his wife, held back tears to recount the moment he heard the news
Detective Inspector Damian Forrest added: Shaun was a 19-year-old man with his whole life ahead of him.
One of the boys posed for a picture with a machete tucked into the top of his trousers hours before he committed murder. He will not be named after a judge rejected a media application
Shawn you must remember we always will remember you until God is ready for us. One day we will see each other. I love you Shawn.
Detective Inspector Damian Forrest added: Shaun was a 19-year-old man with his whole life ahead of him.
What was shocking for the investigation was that those two suspects were 12 years old.
At Nottingham Crown Court today, Mrs Justice Tipples ordered each boy to be detained at His Majestys pleasure for a minimum of eight years and six months – meaning they will remain in custody until they are at least 20.
The sentence includes time spent living in secure accommodation where they have been since the offence last November.
The judge told the boys: What you both did is horrific and shocking. You both killed Shawn in an attack that lasted less than a minute when he asked you to move from where you were on a park bench.
Shawn did not deserve to be attacked. He did not deserve to die… Its clear that the sentence I have decided to pass cannot make that right.
What you did in those few short moments has also changed your life forever. You will have to live with the consequences. I cannot be sure which one of you stabbed Shawn. Only you know that, but you acted together.
The month-long trial at Nottingham Crown Court heard Mr Seesahai, 19, had travelled to the UK from the British Overseas Territory of Anguilla in the Caribbean for medical treatment. He was stabbed with such ferocity with the 16-inch blade that it almost passed through his entire body.
Jurors were told Mr Seesahai was shoulder-barged by the smaller of the two defendants, who often carried the machete, before being punched, kicked, stamped on and chopped at with the weapon.
The victims friend told the trial he was forced to run for his life but Mr Seesahai stumbled as he tried to flee from the boys.
In a heartrending victim impact statement from the family, read to the court by Dorothea Hodge, the UK representative for Anguilla, they said: Losing a child is a parents worst nightmare, and to put it all down in a statement on how it has impacted our lives would take more than a day to read.
It has left a huge hole in the pit of our stomach which nothing can fill, we are devastated as a family, totally heartbroken and confused.
They said they had not had an unbroken nights sleep since the murder and were tormented by how scared Mr Seesahai must have been in his final moments.
Mr Seesahai, who was living in Handsworth, Birmingham at the time of his death, had cataracts that he had been unable to get treatment for in Anguilla. After successful surgery in the UK he was able to start planning for the future and think about getting an education, prosecutor Michelle Heeley KC said.
However, his life was brutally cut short after he and his friend encountered the boys near a bench in the park.
Ms Heeley told jurors that despite the fact he had offered no violence, nor done anything to offend, he became the victim of a savage attack after one of the boys deliberately shoulder brushed him then pulled a machete from his trousers.
Mr Seesahai ended up on the floor where jurors heard he was punched, kicked and knifed – struck so hard on the skull with the machete that a piece of bone came away.
Mrs Justice Tipples was told on Thursday by Ms Heeley there was little precedent for the case and the boys are thought to be the countrys youngest ever knife murderers.
Jonathan Roe, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said today: As prosecutors, we often deal with harrowing cases, but this case is particularly distressing due to the complete senselessness and devastating consequences of the defendants actions.
The defendants at the age of 12 should have been enjoying their childhood rather than arming themselves with a machete and killing an innocent person.
Shawn Seesahai lost his life in a horrifically cruel way. I hope todays sentencing serves as a reminder of the dangers of carrying machetes.
Shawns family have shown remarkable strength and dignity in the aftermath of such a tragedy and our thoughts are with them at this difficult time.