Isaiah Young-Sam

Isaiah Young-Sam was killed in some riots in Birmingham.

Several people were convicted of his murder but later had their convictions quashed.

There were four trials for his murder. In 2006 three men were convicted for his murder and sentenced to 25 years each but they were later acquitted at an appeal after it was heard that evidence had been used incorrectly. It was heard that a secret recording of one of the men confessing to the murder had not been disclosed and as such the convictions were deemed to be unsafe. They were tried again in 2010 but acquitted by a jury.

In 2011 another man was cleared of his murder.

The riots in Birmingham began after tensions rose between the black and Asian communities after it was alleged that a 14-year-old black girl had been gang-raped by a group of Pakistani men in a beauty parlour on Wellington Road, Perry Barr. The story was broadcast as fact on two pirate radio stations and people were saying that the mosques were going to be attacked and there was general chaos from which the rioting erupted during the evening and night of 22 October 2005. During the riots shops were looted and petrol bombs were thrown with many cars being burnt out. A policeman was also shot in the leg and 35 people were taken to hospital.

At about 7.25pm Isaiah Young-Sam had been on his way home from the cinema with his brother and two friends. They had taken some back streets thinking that they would be safer when they were surrounded by a mob of Muslim men and Isaiah Young-Sam was stabbed. He was taken to hospital in a car but pronounced dead on arrival. It had taken them 10 minutes to get to the hospital.

It was said that they had been attacked by about eleven Muslim men. They had been walking along the street when three cars pulled up and the men got out and attacked them.

Isaiah Young-Sam had been an IT worker with the council.