Student accused of 30th London teen homicide of 2021 appears in court

An A-level student accused of killing another boy in a “planned” knife attack has appeared at the Old Bailey.

The 16-year-old youth allegedly repeatedly stabbed Ionut Elvis Tacu in Yiewsley village, in the west London borough of Hillingdon, shortly after 4pm on December 30.

The victim, known as Elvis, also 16, was found collapsed by a member of the public in Philpot’s Farm open space just after 7.30pm the same day.

He had suffered four knife wounds including a fatal 7in (17cm) deep injury to his back which penetrated his heart.

London Ambulance Service paramedics attempted CPR at the scene but Elvis had lost a significant amount of blood and was pronounced dead at 8.20pm.

The defendant, who cannot be named because of his age, was charged with murder and possession of a bladed article.

On Thursday, he appeared at the Old Bailey by video-link from youth custody and spoke only to confirm his identity.

The court was told he was alleged to have taken a knife to the scene and carried out a “planned attack” on an “unsuspecting victim”.

Judge Nigel Lickley QC set a plea hearing for March 24 and remanded the defendant into youth detention accommodation.

Elvis’s death was the 30th recorded teenage homicide in London in 2021, passing the previous peak in 2008 of 29.

It came less than an hour after a 15-year-old boy was pronounced dead following an unrelated stabbing in Croydon, south London.