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He bought a knife, then rode 150 miles to kill
A teenager tracked a man across England and stabbed him outside his London home, months after a family dispute went to police and went nowhere.
In brief
A teenager tracked a man across England and stabbed him outside his London home, months after a family dispute went to police and went nowhere. Police closed the stalking complaint with no further action, and four months later a family member took a knife to London and settled it himself. Originally reported by…
A knife bought in Leeds
CCTV caught Sulaiman Tajzai, 18, buying a knife at a shop near his Leeds home on March 27. Hours later he was 150 miles away in Westminster.
Guilty at the Old Bailey
Tajzai pleaded guilty to the murder of 26-year-old Farmanullah Sherzad, the Metropolitan Police confirmed. He admitted possession of a bladed article too.
The man he hunted
Sherzad, 26, had been the subject of repeated stalking complaints from Tajzai's family. He lived and worked in central London, far from the Leeds dispute.
Tracked across London
Detectives followed his route on camera. He arrived at King's Cross, then walked through the city toward Sherzad's address in Westminster.
Waiting after a shift
Sherzad finished work at 10pm and cycled home. His killer was already there, the court heard, arriving about 15 minutes ahead of him.
Screaming for his life
Security cameras showed a scuffle near the house. Prosecutor Lisa Wilding KC told the court Sherzad ran through the streets as Tajzai came after him.
“screaming for his life”
Stabbed on Abbey Orchard Street
The attack happened just before 10.15pm. Sherzad suffered several stab wounds in what the court called a frenzied assault.
Dead in 20 minutes
Medics reached him but could not save him. He was pronounced dead at 10.35pm on March 27.
The gloves by the park
Fleeing the scene, Tajzai dropped a pair of black gloves near St James' Park. Sherzad's blood was on the outside, Tajzai's DNA on the inside.
He missed his train
Tajzai tried to catch a train back to Leeds from King's Cross that night. He missed it and boarded another just after 6am the next morning.
Arrested at a cousin's house
Police found him in Leeds on March 29. A search of the address turned up several of his belongings, including blood-stained trainers.
It started in autumn 2025
Prosecutors described a clear pre-existing connection between Tajzai's cousin's wife and Sherzad that had turned sour months before the killing.
“pre-existing connection”
A complaint that collapsed
The cousin and his wife reported Sherzad to Leeds police in September, showing an officer his photo and texts in Arabic. Spoken to alone, she deleted the messages and walked out.
Found tied up on the floor
On October 3, officers called at the couple's Leeds home and found Sherzad sitting on the floor, wrists bound with fabric, no shoes on.
Arrested, then released
Sherzad was held on suspicion of stalking and trespass with intent to commit a sexual offence. He was later released without charge.
His version of events
Sherzad said he was in a relationship with the wife and had travelled to Leeds because she invited him on Snapchat.
No further action
The couple kept contacting police after his release. They were eventually told the case against Sherzad was closed.
He scoped it out first
CCTV showed Tajzai had already travelled to London in the weeks before the attack, checking where Sherzad lived and where he worked.
Brutal and senseless
DCI Wayne Jolley, who led the investigation, called it a devastating case in which a young man lost his life to an act of violence with no purpose.
“No family should have to endure the pain of losing a loved one in such circumstances.”
Sentencing on September 18
Tajzai returns to the Old Bailey later this month to learn the minimum term he will serve for the murder.
The big picture
Police closed the stalking complaint with no further action, and four months later a family member took a knife to London and settled it himself.
