Joshua Boardman Wiki

               Joshua Boardman Biography

Joshua Boardman, 17, attacked Hiwa Ali-Khani, 28, as he sat in his car in Preston, Lancaster, on July 8.

Preston Crown Court heard that Boardman thought Ali-Khani had been texting one of her friends, a 15-year-old girl.

Mr Thornton and the girl, whose name cannot be identified for legal reasons, exchanged numbers and sent messages the next day to arrange an appointment, which the court heard Boardman read.

But in fact, it was another man, Stuart Thornton, 35, who had been parked behind Ali-Khani for up to 40 seconds before Boardman arrived, who had been texting the girl.

Thornton even rushed to the aid of Mr. Ali-Khani after he was stabbed, unaware that he was the intended target of the attack.

Murder

Boardman, who previously pleaded guilty to murder, was jailed for life today and told he must serve a minimum of 14 years in prison.

David McLachlan KC, prosecutor, said that the day before the murder, Thornton, 35, had stopped his car to speak to a 15-year-old girl, whom he later told police he thought was ‘cute’ and that she told him she was 16

Mr Thornton and the girl, whose name cannot be identified for legal reasons, exchanged numbers and sent messages the next day to arrange an appointment, which the court heard Boardman read.

In sentencing him, Preston’s Honorary Registrar, Justice Robert Altham, said: “In reality, the defendant intended to be the person who he met and later confronted Mr Thornton.”

He described the case as “particularly tragic.”

He added: “This attack was carried out in the street, in broad daylight on a summer day when members of the public, including children, had to stand and witness a murder.”

Police were called to the scene around 6:25 p.m. m. after an assault report and found Mr. Ali-Khani with a stab wound to the chest.

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Haworth-Oates said:

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Haworth-Oates said: “The death of Mr Ali-Khani  was shocking, tragic and entirely preventable – he was simply going about his normal daily life when he was attacked for no reason, in a case of mistaken identity. ‘

He was treated by paramedics and rushed to Royal Preston Hospital but sadly later died. A post-mortem examination gave the cause of death as a stab wound to the chest.

Detectives discovered that Mr. Ali-Khani was sitting in his car, a black Audi, when he was approached by Boardman, who had used cocaine in the hour before the attack. He got in the car and began arguing with Mr. Ali-Khani, before they both got out and the confrontation continued in the street.

During the confrontation, Boardman stabbed Ali-Khani in the elbow, leg and chest and he collapsed, Lancashire police said.

Charged

Boardman was arrested and charged with murder that night near the scene after stopping a police officer and saying, “You have to arrest me, I just stabbed someone.”

In a statement issued after the sentencing, Mr. Ali-Khani’s family said: “Hiwa was a decent person with a good personality and he believed everyone was good.”

“He was a very optimistic person and had many plans and wishes for the future.

‘Hiwa’s murder not only shocked us, it damaged our lives forever. He was an innocent person who was killed in a very brutal way.

“His killer of him not only buried Hiwa’s beautiful wishes and aspirations, but also the laughter, happiness, and beauty of our lives.”

Speaking after sentencing, Detective Chief Inspector Mark Haworth-Oates said: “Mr Ali-Khani’s death was shocking, tragic and entirely preventable – he was simply going about his normal daily life when he was attacked for no reason, in a case of mistaken identity”.

Family

Mr. Ali-Khani’s family will never get over his loss, a pain that is all the more acute given that he had done absolutely nothing wrong.

“It is understandable that it is never enough for Mr Ali-Khani’s family, they have lost their loved one in the most dire circumstances and now they have to live with that void in their lives.”