A teenager has been convicted of murdering a young architecture student – whose parents swapped their Colombian homeland for the killing fields of North London.
Steven Grisales, 21, (pictured) was stabbed through the heart after confronting a group of youths who were throwing conkers at him.
The fifteen year-old Edmonton schoolboy, who is too young to be identified, was found guilty by an Old Bailey jury of the murder in nearby College Close on August 31, last year.
He will be sentenced on June 13.
Steven was walking to Silver Street train station after dropping off shopping to his grandmother when he was stabbed.
Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Inspector Richard Beadle of the Homicide and Serious Crime Command (HSCC) said:
”Steven did no more than stand up to an unruly youth and for that he has lost his life.
“But for the courageous intervention of a local resident I am convinced the knife attack would have continued.
“The man placed himself in front of Steven while the youth was repeatedly attempting to stab Steven again.
“The defendant has shown no remorse and has continually lied about his involvement.
“Fortunately the jury saw through this dishonest charade. His arrogance and contempt for others belies his age.
“I am extremely grateful to those witnesses who came forward - without them we would not have achieved a successful prosecution.
“Sadly there were others, known to the defendant, who held vital information and refused to help the inquiry.
“In fact they did all they could to deter the investigation and ultimately justice.
“I hope this conviction will bring some sense of justice to Steven’s family who have been devastated by his murder.
“He truly was a nice honest young man with a bright future.
“A moment of madness by an armed individual resulted in the most tragic of circumstances. Steven Grisales should be alive today.”
Steven’s mother, Jasmid Grisales said: “We just want to take this opportunity to thank the prosecution, they did a really great job, the police for all the hard work in putting all the evidence together, a very big thank you to the witnesses, without them, we could not get this excellent result.
“Also a really big thank you to victim support from the start of our nightmare, they have been supporting us in every single way and they really are making our lives easier, they done so much to help us get through this terrible experience, we can see and feel the big difference that they make in our lives.
“It is true to say that this verdict does not change our lives in anyway because we lost Steven for ever and he is not coming back to us. We have to carry this cross for the rest of our lives.
“Steven was always loved by absolutely every person who had the privilege of knowing him and calling him a friend, cousin, nephew, grandson, son or brother.
“He always gave without expecting anything in return and he always tried for everyone around him to be happy.
“This result can show that in a way it is justice and people should start learning that for every wrong you do, sooner or later you have to pay the price.”
Police were called shortly after 7.00pm following reports of an injured man.
On arrival officers learnt the defendant, in the company of other youths and not known to Steven, had began to throw conkers at him.
Steven initially remonstrated with the youths, but the defendant produced a knife and stabbed him.
The defendant ran from the scene, but only after a local resident intervened to stop a further attack.
Sadly this was not enough to save Steven, who was taken to the Royal London Hospital where he died the next day.
A post-mortem gave cause of death as a single stab wound to the heart.
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