A teenager has been found guilty of murder after fatally stabbing a 16-year-old boy during New Year’s Eve fireworks at Primrose Hill in north London. Areece Lloyd-Hall, who was 16 at the time and is now 18, attacked Harry Pitman with a dagger as crowds gathered near police officers watching the display over the River Thames on 31 December 2023.

Mobile phone footage shown in court depicts a knife being produced from Lloyd-Hall’s waistband and swung in an arc that struck Pitman’s neck. Pitman is seen grabbing his neck and moving through the crowd seeking help before he collapsed and died minutes before midnight. Lloyd-Hall, who has said he believed he only hit Pitman with the sheath to push him away and did not intend to kill, fled the scene, discarding the knife, his clothes and his mobile phone. The knife scabbard, found at the scene, carried his DNA. He later attended Hammersmith police station with his father on 4 January 2024.

Prosecutors said Lloyd-Hall had no prior convictions and had been diagnosed with ADHD. They also referenced cannabis-induced paranoia and possible post-traumatic stress disorder linked to witnessing a prior stabbing and the loss of a friend to knife crime in June 2023.