The brutality of 12-year-old Leo Ross’s murder on January 21, 2025, was already horrifying—an unprovoked knife attack on a familiar riverside path in Shire Country Park, Hall Green, Birmingham. But newly revealed details about the killer’s behavior after the stabbing have deepened the community’s shock and revulsion. The 14-year-old perpetrator (now 15 and unnamed due to his age) did not flee immediately. Instead, he returned to the scene, spoke directly to Leo’s best friend who had arrived looking for him, and then engaged with arriving police officers—all while maintaining the appearance of a concerned bystander.

Leo had been walking home from Christ Church C of E Secondary Academy in Yardley Wood. He was on the phone with his best friend Max, arranging to meet near a specific tree in Trittiford Mill Park. Those were his last words. Moments later, the attacker approached without warning or motive and stabbed Leo once in the stomach. Leo collapsed, fatally wounded. The killer then discarded the knife in the nearby River Cole, briefly cycled away, but soon returned to the area as emergency calls began flooding in.

Witness accounts and body-worn camera footage later showed the teenager approaching Max, who had reached the meeting point and was searching for his friend. The attacker calmly said words to the effect of “your friend has just been stabbed” or “he’s been stabbed over there,” directing Max toward the spot where Leo lay dying. Max, unaware of the deception, rushed to find his friend while the killer lingered nearby. This interaction—speaking to the victim’s closest friend while the crime was still unfolding—has been described by investigators as one of the most calculated and disturbing aspects of the entire sequence.

When police and paramedics arrived, the teenager inserted himself further into the scene. Bodycam footage captured him approaching officers, feigning shock and concern. He told them he had “found” Leo already injured on the ground and claimed he knew nothing more. His voice remained steady; he offered no signs of panic or guilt. Officers initially treated him as a helpful witness who had stumbled upon the victim. This deception delayed any immediate suspicion falling on him and allowed precious minutes to pass while paramedics fought to save Leo’s life. Leo was pronounced dead at hospital around 7:30 p.m.

The killer’s pattern of behavior extended beyond the immediate aftermath. In the days leading up to January 21, he had assaulted three elderly women in the same park area on January 19, 20, and earlier on the 21st, pushing them to the ground and causing serious injuries. Detectives later concluded he deliberately targeted vulnerable people, carried a knife throughout, and appeared to derive satisfaction from inflicting pain and watching the resulting chaos. CCTV placed him cycling through the park “hunting” for victims before encountering Leo alone on the footpath.

Forensic evidence ultimately linked him to the crime. The recovered knife matched Leo’s wound, blood was found on clothing seized from his home, and digital records placed him at the scene. At Birmingham Crown Court on January 29, 2026, the now-15-year-old pleaded guilty to Leo’s murder, the three assaults on the elderly women, and possession of a bladed article. He admitted intending to kill or cause serious harm. Sentencing is set for February 10, 2026.

Leo’s family and friends have been left shattered by both the violence and the killer’s cold composure afterward. Max, who usually walked home with Leo but was ill that day, arrived at the tree only to be confronted by the very person responsible for his friend’s death. The moment has haunted him. Leo’s foster family described him as “the sweetest, kindest boy who put others before himself,” loved by everyone he met. His birth mother, Rachel Fisher, called him “the sweetest, most kind-hearted boy” with no bad bone in his body. A family friend, Tammy Rogers (Max’s mother), remembered Leo as “caring, inquisitive, intellectual… a beautiful, beautiful boy.”

The killer’s decision to remain at the scene and engage with both Leo’s friend and the police has intensified public outrage. It raises disturbing questions about how someone so young could commit murder and then blend back into the crowd, even participating in the response. Neighbors had previously reported concerning behavior that escalated without intervention, prompting reflection on missed opportunities to stop the violence before it reached Leo.

The case has reignited urgent debate about youth knife crime in the UK. Leo’s death—the youngest knife murder victim in the West Midlands—highlights how quickly safety can vanish on everyday paths. Parents now question whether children are truly protected on routes once considered harmless. Calls for stronger park patrols, tougher penalties for blade possession, and early support for at-risk youth have grown louder.

Yet amid the anger and demands for change, the most powerful response remains remembrance. Leo was not defined by his final moments or the cruelty that ended them. He was a gentle, curious child who loved simple things—being outdoors, sharing meals, laughing with friends. His best friend waited at a tree for a boy who would never arrive. The killer’s deception at the scene only deepens the tragedy: not only was Leo’s life stolen, but the last person he spoke to—his friend—was manipulated by the very person who took him.

As sentencing approaches, Leo’s story endures as both memorial and warning. No child should have their walk home end in violence. No friend should be told of a stabbing by the person who caused it. And no community should have to grapple with the knowledge that a killer stayed behind—not to help, but to watch.