Man convicted of daylight Norfolk killing in street

Junior Suleimane had just brought some cigarettes from a shop on St Peter's Street, just off Great Yarmouth's Golden Mile, when he spotted Felizardo Jose Vieira-Balde walking past.

He crossed the road before pulling out a large knife from his backpack before stabbing his victim - who he blamed for an attack one month earlier - in the chest.

Scene of fatal stabbing in Great Yarmouth (Image: Newsquest)

Mr Vieiria-Balde, 23, died in a nearby alleyway after staggering away with “unsurvivable injuries”.

Suleimane had denied murder but was convicted by a jury at Norwich Crown Court after a two-week trial.

The trial had been told there had been animosity between the pair following an incident five months earlier, when Suleimane threw Mr Vieira-Balde and another man out of a party he was hosting in the town, because they were having a row.

Four months after that  Mr Vieira-Balde attacked Suleimane and stabbed him when they bumped into each other at another property in Yarmouth.

Weeks later, their feud came to a deadly end on the streets of the town.

Junior Suleimane (Image: Norfolk Constabulary)

NO EMOTION

The seven men and five women on the jury took seven hours and seven minutes to reach a majority verdict.

Norwich Crown Court (Image: Peter Walsh, Newsquuest)

Suleimane, who had already admitted possession of a bladed article, showed no emotion as the guilty verdict was announced.

Meanwhile family members of Mr Vieira-Balde's family exercised a quiet dignity as the verdict was read out. Judge Alice Robinson thanked jurors for their attention to the case.

Judge Alice Robinson (Image: Newsquest) She said Suleimane, who wore a waistcoat and white shirt and trousers, would be sentenced at a date to be fixed, likely to be in October.

Felizardo Jose Vieira-Balde (Image: Supplied) He will be sentenced alongside two other defendants, including Jaimes Santos, 45, of Nelson Road South, Yarmouth - Suleimane's uncle - who had previously admitted assisting an offender.

He had admitted assisting Suleimane between February 7 and 11 last year by disposing of evidence and helping him leave the scene.

Scene of fatal stabbing in Great Yarmouth (Image: Newsquest) Another man, Vitor Silva, 22, of Crossway Terrace, Loddon, also faces sentencing after he admitted assisting an offender.

ESCAPE ROUTE

Both Suleimane and Santos fled the scene after the killing.

CCTV shows both men appearing to have changed their clothing to evade police detection as they leave a complex of flats at Caesar’s Palace in Yarmouth around 2pm on the day of the murder.

Suleimane is seen carrying a blue bag in his right hand, and Santos is carrying a black bin liner with unknown contents. 

The pair were tracked across the country, initially to Loddon where associate Vitor Silva helped them travel to an address in Cambridge.

They later went to London and were eventually arrested on a bus at Leeds City Bus Station, after being tracked down there.

'SPUR OF THE MOMENT' KILLING

The trial, which started last month, heard how the spur of the moment attack on St Peter's Street had been “quite simply a revenge killing”.

Jurors were shown CCTV footage of Suleimane leaving the Londis store on the road after buying cigarettes and seeing Mr Vieira-Balde walking past.

The fatal knife attack was caught on CCTV (Image: Supplied) The graphic footage showed him removing a large knife from a backpack and walking towards Mr Vieira-Balde before striking him. 

Mr Vieira-Balde, a factory worker who was living at the Elstow Hotel off Stanley Terrace, died in a nearby alleyway. 

Felizardo Jose Vieira-Balde staggering away after being stabbed (Image: Submitted)

EARLIER ATTACK

The trial was told how the attack - which happened at about 12.40pm on February 8 last year - came about a month after an earlier incident where Sulemaine was stabbed in the leg by Mr Vieira-Balde.

Jurors heard how the earlier stabbing occurred when Suleimane, formerly of Market Place, Yarmouth, had gone to visit his mother in her flat in the town.

As he went to go up the stairs Suleimane said he was "charged" at by a man wearing a bandana.

Police at the scene of the fatal stabbing in Great Yarmouth (Image: Newsquest) Suleimane said he kicked him to the top half of his body but was stabbed in the leg as he did so.

He managed to pick up a wooden pallet from the back of a nearby shop to help defend himself from the man who tried to stab him "multiple times".

Suleimane said the man - who he later realised was Mr Vieira-Balde - had said he had "wanted to teach me some respect" after he had "disrespected" him in front of his people.

Police at the scene of the fatal stabbing in Great Yarmouth (Image: Newsquest)

PARTY FALL-OUT

Jurors were told this comment followed another incident in October 2022 at a party which Suleimane had organised in Yarmouth.

Suleimane threw Mr Vieira-Balde and another man out of the event after he caught them "having conflict" with each other.

He said Mr Vieira-Balde "didn't like it" and was angry, suggesting that in evicting him Suleimane thought he was "better than everyone else".

CLAIMS OF FEAR

Suleimane, who was represented by Simon Spence KC, said he was frightened for both himself and his girlfriend and two children following the stabbing attack.

Police at the scene of the fatal stabbing in Great Yarmouth (Image: Newsquest) But Will Carter, prosecuting, said it was plain Suleimane was not "terrified to go out on the streets of Yarmouth" due to that earlier incident, as the defendant had suggested.

Mr Carter said Suleimane had not contacted the police or authorities as a result of what happened and was carrying that "horrible" weapon, not for his own protection, but as he was "prepared, ready and armed to do it himself".

He said Suleimane had with him a knife “capable of inflicting, as we know, dreadful injury”  when he encountered Mr Vieira-Balde on St Peter's Street.

Police at the scene of the fatal stabbing (Image: Newsquest) Although he didn't need to confront Mr Vieira-Balde, who was "simply walking past" on the other side of the road, Mr Carter said Suleimane "calmly" approached him.

He said he then took out the knife, which "if used was bound to cause horrible damage", and stabbed the victim.

Mr Carter insisted Suleimane "doesn't need to do any of this" as Mr Vieira-Balde had been "simply walking past" on the other side of the road.

He said: "This is not about self defence it's about loss of face about perceived disrespect and it's about revenge."

FAST-PACED POLICEWORK

Speaking after the verdict, Norfolk Police's Detective Inspector Dave McCormack, who led the murder investigation, said: “Suleimane arrived at the scene of the crime prepared to commit the most serious act of violence. 

"Felizardo was a young man with a bright future loved by his family and community. 

"My deepest condolences go to his family and friends for their loss. 

“Suleimane and his uncle aided by a friend moved across the country intent on evading capture in full knowledge of the crime they had committed. 

"Fast paced police enquiries identified their location at several points in several counties. 

"Investigators worked with specialist officers in several police authorities providing extremely short notice to respond, until they were eventually apprehended on a bus intent on travelling to the north of the country.”

Scenes of crime officers in Great Yarmouth after the fatal stabbing (Image: Newsquest)