Teenager gets life sentence for stabbing Northland man to death

14-year-old gets life sentence for killing 22-year-old. Photo / RNZ

A teenager who stabbed a young Northland man to death has been sentenced to life in prison.

The boy, who has name suppression, was 14 when he killed Bram Willems in January 2021 - stabbing him with a knife seven times in the chest and abdomen, and another six times around the lower back.

Willems was 22 at the time.

The teenager was found guilty of murder at a jury trial last year.

Justice Brewer told the High Court in Whangārei today that the boy's anger exploded on a night out drinking, and he attacked Willems.

A minimum non-parole period of 10 years has been imposed.

The Willems family told the court the murder left them haunted by unimaginable pain.