A convicted murderer smirked and pulled faces at a camera as he was sentenced for possessing an imitation firearm and burglary committed before he was sent to prison. Teenager Joseph Jeremy was jailed for life with a minimum of 24 years after being convicted of the murder of Ryan O'Connor.
Jeremy, now 19, along with Lewis Aquilina, was found guilty of Mr O'Connor's murder, which took place in Newport on June 10, 2021. Both were involved in knife and gang culture in Cardiff and proudly posed with weapons in self-filmed videos and were involved in intimidation or violent attacks which were posted on social media.
Mr O'Connor was walking home from his brother's house in Alway when he was confronted by Jeremy and Aquilina who stabbed him to death and robbed him of a Gucci bag he was carrying. As he lay dying on the pavement, with passers-by doing their best to save him, the murderers drove past and laughed as Mr O'Connor's life ebbed away. The father-of-one died as a result of his injuries. As well as being convicted of murder Jeremy and Aquilina were also found guilty of robbery. Kyle Raisis was found guilty of Mr O'Connor's manslaughter and also robbery while Ethan Strickland was also found guilty of robbery.
