London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Jul 05, 2025

Birmingham stabbings: man given minimum 21-year prison sentence

Birmingham stabbings: man given minimum 21-year prison sentence

Zephaniah McLeod, who has paranoid schizophrenia, killed one and injured seven in knife attacks last year

A man diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia who killed a 23-year-old man and injured seven others in a violent stabbing spree in Birmingham last year has been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 21 years.

Zephaniah McLeod, 28, carried out a series of seemingly random and motiveless knife attacks early on 6 September 2020, killing Jacob Billington, a university worker who was on his way back to his hotel with friends after a night out.

Ordering the 28-year-old’s detention, initially at Ashworth hospital, Mr Justice Pepperall said: “Your victims were variously enjoying a night out or returning home from work. They gave you no offence and they were chosen at random.

“Wherever possible you aimed your knives at your victims’ necks,” he added. “In the course of your murderous rampage you killed one man, left another man and woman fighting for their lives and wounded five others.”

He said: “I have no doubt whatsoever you are a very dangerous man and pose a significant risk to members of the public of serious harm.”

Karim Khalil QC, prosecuting, told Birmingham crown court that three days before the attacks McLeod refused to attend a psychiatric assessment and said he was hearing voices “all the time” that were “distressing”.

The court heard that for years McLeod had refused to consistently take anti-psychotic medication as he disliked the side-effects, and said he would only take it when he felt he was in crisis.

When visited by a mental health nurse on 3 September he said he did not have a prescription for the medication and had instead been “taking his friend’s”. Prior to the visit, mental health services had been unable to locate McLeod for months after his release from a three-year prison term in April 2020.

McLeod was released to live in the community unsupervised at the height of the Covid pandemic despite frequently refusing to take medication in prison and having spoken in 2018 of hearing voices that said “kill em, stab, stab em, they’re talking about you”.

Kahlil told the sentencing hearing that McLeod had “never before received sustained, effective treatment” for his schizophrenia due to being in and out of prison for previous crimes including assault, supplying drugs and possession of an imitation firearm.

McLeod claims to have no memory of July, August and September 2020, including the night of the attacks, but the prosecution argued that evidence that he searched for news coverage of the incident afterwards suggested he was aware to some extent.

Giving evidence, Dr Jeremy Kenney-Herbert, a consultant forensic psychiatrist, said McLeod was “very dangerous” and would need “close and lifelong treatment” for his mental illness.

McLeod admitted Billington’s manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, and four counts of attempted murder and three separate offences of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

Jacob Billington was on his way back to his hotel with friends after a night out when he was attacked.


Reading out statements in court, Billington’s family expressed frustration that McLeod had not been more closely monitored by mental health services and that he had been convicted of manslaughter rather than murder.

“McLeod brought terror to the streets of Birmingham but apparently is not a terrorist. What he is we’ll never know,” said Billington’s father, Keith. “This man has no place in society. He is clearly one of the most dangerous people to have walked the streets of your city.”

Joanne Billington, the victim’s mother, said McLeod’s care needed to be properly looked into. “My son bled to death in the street at the hands of someone well known to many agencies,” she said.

McLeod, after stabbing three of his victims, went to a takeaway to ask for a knife, and when he was refused he took a taxi to his home in Selly Oak to rearm himself before returning to the city centre.

Khalil said McLeod repeatedly aimed for the head and neck in the attacks. “We suggest the fact some victims sustained physical injuries that weren’t as serious was purely by chance, rather than by design,” he said.

Billington’s best friend, Michael Callaghan, 24, was stabbed in the neck and suffered a “catastrophic” stroke that left him partly paralysed down his left side.

In a victim impact statement, Callaghan said: “As I was bleeding out I was unable to try and help save Jacob. My friend saved my life; what’s to say I wouldn’t have been able to do the same?”

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Political Dispute Escalates Between Trump and Musk
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
US Senate Votes to Remove AI Regulation Moratorium from Domestic Policy Bill
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
Jury Deliberations in Diddy Trial Yield Partial Verdict in Serious Criminal Charges
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
King Charles Plans Significant Role for Prince Harry in Coronation
Two Chinese Nationals Arrested for Espionage Activities Against U.S. Navy
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
Trump Administration Considers Withdrawal of Funding for Hospitals Providing Gender Treatment to Minors
×