T’Shai Ennis, 19, of Chadwick Road, Langley, Idris Daud, 20, of Anton Place, Wembley, and Ayman Koshin, 18, of Summers Close, Wembley, searched for victim David Headlam, 18, in a minicab until they spotted the 18-year-old walking home with a friend in the early hours of June 29 last year.

The hoodie-wearing killers had got a taxi to circle a youth club before they jumped out after spotting Mr Headlam and his friend Kamar Hewitt, 20, The trio pursued Mr Headlam for more than 400 yards and cornered him in the doorway of a house in Harlesden, northwest London.

Mr Headlam, son of Pentecostal church minister Bishop Alonzo Headlam, pleaded 'don’t stab me, don’t kill me’ but was knifed three times and was left bleeding to death on the ground. After the stabbing, the killers ran off and got the same cab back to Wembley.

The motive for the attack remains a mystery but police later discovered a video of Ennis rapping about violence and avoiding the police in a song titled 'Catch Me Slippin’.

The trio all denied involvement in the stabbing, but were each found guilty of murder by an Old Bailey jury as well as wounding intent for stabbing Mr Hewitt, who managed to escape the attack, in his left thigh.

At the same court on Thursday last week (23/4), Koshin, who was just 17 at the time of the murder, was sentenced to life with a minimum of 18 years detention, Daud and Ennis were each handed life sentences with minimum terms of 20 years.

In sentencing, Judge Anthony Bate said: “David begged for mercy, but his determined attackers showed him none. The only mitigating factor common to all three defendants is a proven shared intention to cause grievous injury rather than kill, although its weight is reduced by your callous indifference to David’s fate after he had been stabbed.

“You left him bleeding on the ground and made no attempt then or later to summon help. None of you have since shown a shred of remorse.” Koshin claimed he had an alibi for the killing and both Daud and Ennis claimed they were innocent passengers in the taxi on their way to a party and were not involved in the stabbing.

The three all denied, but were convicted of, murder and wounding with intent.