A group of four teenagers have been sentenced after orchestrating a violent attack involving a stabbing on an 18-year-old trans girl in a car park in north-west London. The attack, described as “vicious” by Judge Philip Katz KC, involved grievous bodily harm with intent and was motivated by transphobia and a “distorted sense of revenge”.  

The incident took place after the victim was lured to the location under false pretences of an invitation to a disco at a rollerskating rink. Upon arrival, she was brutally beaten and stabbed in the premeditated assault. Only the intervention of passersby prevented the attack from becoming fatal.

The court heard that the group also subjected the victim to humiliation by recording and sharing footage of her engaging in a sexual act with one of the attackers, Bradley Harris. The victim, having suffered attacks in the past due to her gender identity, initially denied being trans when confronted.

Summer Betts-Ramsey, 20, from Barnet, who reportedly played a leading role in the attack and boasted about stabbing the victim on Snapchat, received the longest sentence of eight and a half years at a youth detention centre. The judge deemed Betts-Ramsey a “dangerous offender” and described her actions as motivated by hatred and a “distorted desire for revenge”. She will serve at least four and a half years in custody.

Bradley Harris, 18, from Harrow; Camron Osei, 18, from Tadworth, Surrey; and Shiloh Hindes, 18, from Peckham, were each sentenced to three years in youth detention for their roles in the attack. A 17-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was given a youth rehabilitation order, a three-month curfew, and restrictions preventing contact with the other defendants or from entering the Harrow area.  

Another 17-year-old girl, who was 16 at the time of the attack and admitted to stealing the victim’s handbag, received a 12-month supervision order, having already spent a year in custody.

The victim, addressing the court, said, “I feel like I am the one living a life sentence”. She described enduring previous hostility because of her identity but had never imagined anyone could harbour such hatred as to attack her.

According to a metropolitan police report, Detective Inspector Nicola Hannant, who led the investigation, called the assault “horrendous and violent,” noting that it was driven by transphobia. Hannant praised the victim’s courage throughout the case and expressed hope that the four teenagers’ sentences would allow her to move forward with her life.