Mears Threw Zombie Knife From Car Window; Tristan Kerr Murder Sentencing November 18

Georgie Mears, 19, disposed of the zombie knife used to kill 17-year-old Tristan Kerr by throwing it from the window of a moving car, then destroyed his mobile phone's SIM card and abandoned his clothing in a park in an attempt to frustrate the police investigation. The weapon has never been recovered. Daily Dazzling Dawn understands that Mears, convicted of murder at Newport Crown Court on Wednesday, will be sentenced by Mrs Justice Mary Stacey on Wednesday, November 18, when she will set the minimum tariff he must serve before parole eligibility. Connor Palfrey, 25, of Aberfawr Terrace in Abertridwr, convicted of manslaughter, will be sentenced on the same date.

The five-week trial exposed how quickly Mears moved to cover his tracks after the fatal stabbing on Lower Francis Street in Abertridwr, Caerphilly, at around 5.40pm on Thursday, February 5. Daily Dazzling Dawn learned that Mears, Palfrey, Ricardo Elliot and Elexi Manny left the property together and drove to Hereford in Manny's Volkswagen Polo, where armed police later arrested them. Along the route, the murder weapon was discarded. It remains missing to this day, a detail that shaped the prosecution's reconstruction of the attack and left Tristan's family without the physical exhibit that might otherwise have answered their remaining questions.

The 13.5cm blade passed through the teenager's lung and heart. A forensic examination of the jacket Tristan was wearing identified three separate cuts or slashes, evidence the Crown used to challenge Mears' account that the knife became visible only during a struggle. Mears told the court he had travelled to the flat to deliver two £25 bags of ketamine, claiming the teenager tried to punch and rugby tackle him as he entered the living room. He insisted he acted in self-defence and told jurors: "I'm terribly sorry. I didn't mean to kill him."

Michael Jones KC, prosecuting, told the jury that Mears rushed into the living room "stabbing and swinging out" at Tristan, with Palfrey following armed with a wooden stick to deter the teenager's friends from intervening. Conah Davies, who was in the flat playing Fortnite with Tristan, gave evidence contradicting the self-defence claim. Ieuan Crane, who lived at the address, recalled seeing the teenager run out of the back door. "I didn't see no blood as he ran out. I thought he was sound, then I saw him collapsed in the street," he said. "I could see blood dripping down to his socks, he had white socks. I didn't know what to do. I couldn't move him."

Ring doorbell footage captured Tristan attempting to steady himself on a bin before falling beside a parked car. He told Mr Davies: "I'm hurting, I love you bro." An off-duty nurse tried to stop the bleeding, but he died at the scene. The court heard he lived nearby with his grandfather Jason and visited daily to see his lurcher dog.

Ricardo Elliot, 27, of no fixed address, and Elexi Manny, 25, of Commercial Street in Senghenydd, were cleared of both murder and manslaughter. Daily Dazzling Dawn understands both had spent nine months remanded in custody before Mrs Justice Stacey told them they were free to leave. Elliot had described Tristan to police as a "good guy" and denied any involvement in the killing or its planning. Manny said she had gone to the flat to speak to someone about damage to her car and had not seen the knife or the fight.

Mears will receive a mandatory life sentence, beginning his term in a young offender institution given his age. The judicial task on November 18 is to fix the minimum term, the point at which the Parole Board may first consider release. Palfrey, convicted of manslaughter, faces a determinate sentence of years rather than a life term. Both remain remanded in custody and neither was present in court for the verdicts, having been unable to attend because of a sickness bug in the prison estate.

After the verdicts, Tristan's family paid tribute to a teenager they described as "handsome and quick-witted, with a passion for motorbikes and adventure." Their statement, reported by Daily Dazzling Dawn, added: "He had a spark about him that drew people in, and an energy that filled every room he entered." They closed with the words: "RIP our darling boy, forever 17."

Daily Dazzling Dawn will report the sentencing hearing in full on November 18.