Man jailed for killing student over fake Rolex row

A student who stabbed his former friend through the heart in Leicester after they fell out over a fake Rolex watch has been found guilty of manslaughter.

Harper Dennis, 19, plunged a knife five times into the chest of Khaleed Oladipo, 20, near De Montfort University in Leicester on the evening of February 3 this year.

A jury at Leicester Crown Court found Dennis not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter, having an offensive weapon and failing to provide the pin to his phone after a two-week trial.

Dennis, of Bath Lane, Leicester, was told he would be sentenced later on Tuesday.

Prosecutor Jane Osborne KC told the jury Dennis killed Oladipo, who he made friends with through online gaming, because of a "perceived debt".

She said Oladipo and Dennis were both in Oxford Street near De Montfort University's Innovation Centre when the stabbing, which was captured on dashcam footage, took place.

At about 17:00 GMT on the night he died, Oladipo left his girlfriend's flat carrying a plastic bag of leftover snacks and was on the phone to her while he walked back to his accommodation nearby to watch football.

But outside the DMU Innovation Centre, he was met by Dennis who was captured on CCTV walking up and down in the "busy" area.

"It took less than 30 seconds for the two men to come together, to struggle and for the defendant to leave," Osborne told the court.

The court was told Oladipo's girlfriend heard him say "why did you come up and stab me?" over the phone before asking for her to call the ambulance.

A post-mortem examination showed he had suffered six wounds, five to the chest including one which penetrated his heart, and one to his thumb.

Despite being taken to the Leicester Royal Infirmary, he was pronounced dead just over an hour after the stabbing, which took place near the DMU campus.

Giving evidence in his defence on Wednesday, Dennis said he was "fearful" for his life when Oladipo approached him with a knife, adding he was "wrestling" to prevent the 20-year-old from stabbing him.