Harvey Willgoose teen killer's depraved life of violence, anger and obsession

As Harvey Willgoose's killer is named as 15-year-old Mohammed Umar Khan, the Mirror takes a look at the schoolboy with a dark 'obsession' with weapons, and a temper that left teachers feeling threatened

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The killer of 15-year-old Harvey Willgoose has been named at today's sentencing, in a case that has highlighted every parent's worst nightmare.

Weapons-obsessed schoolboy Mohammed Umar Khan, 15, was found guilty of Harvey's murder in August and will be sentenced today by Mrs Justice Ellenbogen. Before announcing his fate, the judge made a ruling to allow Khan to be named, despite being a juvenile.

A 'school avoider', before his death Harvey had been too 'anxious' to attend classes at All Saints Catholic High School in Sheffield, telling his dad that he didn't want to go in over fears of other pupils carrying knives.

On Monday, February 3, Harvey returned to school, telling his mother Caroline that he loved her before walking out the door. Tragically, Caroline would never see him alive again. Just five minutes into his lunch break, Harvey was stabbed in the heart by Khan with such force that the blade broke through five of his ribs. His devastated family learned he hadn't made it after seeing an 'RIP Harvey' post on social media as they rushed to the hospital.

Here, the Mirror explores the dark life of Harvey's teenage killer, whose behaviour had raised "red flags" long before the harrowing attack...

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History of violence and anger

The prosecution told the jury about Khan's history of anger and violence at school, including how the defendant had previously attacked a pupil, smashed a monitor and punched a wall.

During the opening of the case, Richard Thyne KC told the court:"The defendant had a significant history of becoming angry and using violence at school. There are three specific recorded incidents during his time at All Saints School – in addition to the fatal stabbing."

According to Mr Thyne, the first incident occurred during a French lesson held on November 25, 2024. After being given a detention by his teacher, Khan responded by telling her to ‘shut up'. He then punched the computer monitor with such force that it smashed. The teacher felt threatened by the actions of Khan, who also attacked a fellow pupil as he sat at a computer, pulling him from his chair.

The jury was shown CCTV of this incident. On another occasion, Khan punched a wall after a teacher accused him of being on his phone.

Difficult home life

Jurors heard that there had been "some reports of difficulties at home", with claims that Khan and his siblings had been malnourished. The prosecutor told the court: "I have already told you that he had told his Aunt that he didn't feel safe at school."

After killing Harvey, the first thing Khan said after “dropping” the knife into his deputy head’s hand, was: "I’m not right in the head". He added that, "my mum does not look after me right".

The court heard how Khan had medical difficulties and had to wear a catheter. His mum also had 'mental health issues'.

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Dark obsession

Jurors were told how Khan had been “obsessed” with weapons since he was 13, and had even taken a knife and an axe into school months earlier. During the trial, it emerged that a police officer also visited Khan in the months before the attack about an axe his mum had found hidden in his bag at home. Khan was not arrested on this occasion and was instead told about the "dangers of carrying weapons".

Khan had also discussed “shanking” someone and had previously taken a selfie holding a knife while on school grounds. After Harvey’s death, police seized Khan's phone and discovered photos of him posing with various weapons, including hunting knives, a machete, a hammer and a baseball bat.

The teenager killer told officers he "enjoyed' playing Assassin's Creed, discussing how the video game involved an assassin. He'd purchased an Assassin's Creed knife online, but described it as a 'prop knife', claiming that it couldn't be used to stab anyone.

Discussing the axe incident in a previous interview with the Mirror, Harvey's mum, Caroline, said: "One of the parents has been in touch with me. She said she reported the axe in October, but nothing was done. That her son knew he had an axe in his bag. One of the children said he used to make him feel them in his pocket.”

The court heard this pupil had been told by Khan to feel the outline of the axe concealed in his pocket.

Disturbing internet searches

Khan's killer's internet search history revealed that since at least September 2024, he had made a number of disturbing searches, using terms such as zombie killer knife, dagger, pocket knife, and machete.

Caroline remarked: “There were so many red flags. That's the harrowing thing, that's the worst thing, that it could have been so prevented. There were at least five."

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Killing over Snapchat row

Harvey was stabbed to death after a dispute over Snapchat. It was understood Khan and Harvey had previously been on good terms but had fallen out over a fight between two other pupils, with each one taking opposing sides.

This disagreement escalated on Snapchat, with threats being made between them. The prosecution said that Khan had used the 13cm hunting knife to kill Harvey because he “wanted to show he was hard” and "not to be messed with".

Caroline said it was too unbearable to watch CCTV of Harveys murder, which was shown to the jury. She did, however, watch footage of the lead-up, and could tell that her son was “frightened”.

She shared: “When he's goading him, he's just got his hands behind his back, then he's got his coat in his hand and juice in the other, and then he just turns and talks to a girl. I can tell that he's frightened. And he said to a teacher in Damascus (the isolation room), which would have been within the hour of it happening, ‘the way he's moving, he's a knife on him’, and nothing was done.

Chilling dance after stabbing

After stabbing Harvey twice, once with “severe force” cutting through a rib and piercing his heart, Khan was then seen "dancing and bouncing" on his toes, still armed with the weapon. Giving evidence later before the court, Khan claimed he'd "lost control" and didn’t remember stabbing Harvey.

Harvey's sister Sophie took to Facebook during the trial to share her anguish “Today was one of the hardest days of my life. I had to sit in a courtroom just feet away from the family of the person who murdered my brother. I had to watch devastating CCTV footage of my brother being stabbed. Then trying to run away, not even realising he’d been stabbed… before collapsing to the ground.

“I had to see his killer parade around school with the knife, dancing and showing it off like it was something to be proud of. I had to watch hours of footage showing my brother being pushed around and tormented throughout the day.

“I saw him take himself into isolation, just trying to stay out of harm’s way. I had to sit there and cry in front of journalists, in front of strangers, completely broken. I had to watch his murderer sit there with no remorse whatsoever. I had to look at a pool of my brother’s blood on the screen — something no sibling should ever have to see.

“We had to listen as the police revealed that the boy who killed my brother had an obsession with weapons… had photos of himself posing with knives and weapons. How was this ever allowed to continue? This post isn’t for sympathy. It’s a post to show that knife crime is real, and it has a devastating impact on everyone involved. The Willgoose family will never be the same again. ”

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