Chilling moment killer pulls out a huge knife before plunging it into rival’s chest in broad daylight

Strolling casually towards his victim, a young man pulls out a huge knife and plunges it deep into the man’s chest.

This was the scene at Great Yarmouth’s famous Golden Mile when a feud between two men exploded into a brutal murder in broad daylight.

Killer Junior Suleimane, 22, had just come out of a shop in the Norfolk seaside town when he spotted rival Felizardo Jose Vieira-Balde walking past.

There was bad blood between them after Suleimane previously threw Mr Vieira-Balde and a friend out of a party because they were having a row, allegedly leading to the 23-year-old to stab him in the leg when they bumped into each other on another occasion.

Weeks later, in the latest example of the lawlessness on Britain’s streets, hooded Suleimane saw his nemesis on the other side of the road, pulled the blade out of his rucksack, and delivered the single, fatal blow.

Strolling casually towards his victim, a young man pulls out a huge knife and plunges it deep into the man’s chest. This was the scene at Great Yarmouth’s famous Golden Mile when a feud between two men exploded into a brutal murder in broad daylight

Killer Junior Suleimane, 22, had just come out of a shop in the Norfolk seaside town when he spotted rival Felizardo Jose Vieira-Balde walking past

He has now been convicted of murder after a two-week trial in which prosecutor Will Carter told the jury to ignore the defendant’s claims that he acted to protect himself.

‘This is not about self-defence. It’s about loss of face, about perceived respect, and it’s about revenge,’ he said.

The fateful crossing of paths took place at lunchtime on February 8 last year, when Suleimane bought cigarettes at a Londis store and emerged to find Mr Vieira-Balde on the other side of the road.

Despite the presence of passers-by and bustling businesses, he went straight over to stab him, as seen in CCTV footage presented to the court.

His victim, who was living in a nearby hotel, is seen staggering away before collapsing and dying in a nearby alleyway.

Suleimane and his uncle, Jaimes Santos, 45, fled the scene afterwards and changed their clothes to avoid being spotted by police as they left a complex of flats in Yarmouth barely an hour later.

They tried to avoid arrest by travelling to Loddon in Norfolk, where a friend, Vitor Silva, helped them travel to an address in Cambridge.

They later went to London and were finally arrested as they tried to leave on a bus at Leeds City Bus Station.

Despite the presence of passers-by and bustling businesses, he went straight over to stab him, as seen in CCTV footage presented to the court

The feud began in October 2022, when Suleimane organised a party in Yarmouth where he threw Mr Vieira-Balde and another man out when he caught them ‘having conflict’ with each other.

The defendant said factory worker Mr Vieira-Balde ‘didn’t like it’ and was angry, claiming Suleimane thought he was ‘better than everyone else’.

A few months later the defendant, who lives in the town, claimed he was visiting his mother when a man concealing his identity with a bandana ‘charged’ at him.

During the ensuing altercation, the man managed to stab him in the leg.

Suleimane claimed in court that he later realised his attacker was Mr Vieira-Balde who had ‘wanted to teach me some respect’ after he had been ‘disrespected’ at the party.

The incident left Suleimane frightened for himself, his girlfriend and his two children, his barrister told jurors.

But Mr Carter pointed out it was clear he was not ‘terrified to go out on the streets of Yarmouth’ and that he had not contacted police or any other authorities to seek justice.

Instead, he was carrying the ‘horrible’ weapon not for his own protection but because he was ‘prepared, ready and armed to do it himself’.

Suleimane, who previously admitted possession of a bladed article, didn’t ‘need to do any of this’, Mr Carter added, as his victim had been ‘simply walking past’ on the other side of the road.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer recently said he would make it his ‘moral mission’ to tackle knife crime 

The Prime Minister discussed knife crime during a meeting with victims’ families attended by actor and anti-crime campaigner Idris Elba 

The defendant, who wore a waistcoat and crisp white shirt in court, showed no emotion as the jury delivered its majority verdict.

Family members of Mr Vieira-Balde remained silent and didn’t comment as they left court on Tuesday.

Suleimane will be sentenced at a later date alongside Santos, also of Yarmouth, who previously admitted assisting an offender between February 7 and 11 last year.

Silva, 22, of Loddon, will be sentenced for the same offence.

Speaking afterwards, Detective Inspector Dave McCormack said, who led the murder investigation, said: ‘Suleimane arrived at the scene of the crime prepared to commit the most serious act of violence.

‘Suleimane and his uncle, aided by a friend, moved across the country, intent on evading capture in full knowledge of the crime they had committed.

‘Fast-paced police enquiries identified their location at several points in several counties.

‘Investigators worked with specialist officers in several police authorities, providing extremely short notice to respond, until they were eventually apprehended on a bus, intent on travelling to the north of the country.’

Britain’s knife crime epidemic saw 50,510 offences recorded in in the year to March 2024, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics last month. This was up four per cent on the previous 12 months.

Attacks disproportionately affected young people, with teenagers twice as likely to be fatally stabbed as they were a decade ago.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer recently said he would make it his ‘moral mission’ to tackle the problem during a meeting with victims’ families attended by actor and anti-crime campaigner Idris Elba.