An 18-year-old Afghan man who arrived in Britain as a small-boat migrant has pleaded guilty to murdering a shop worker in London, in an attack prosecutors said was planned rather than spontaneous. Suliaman Tajzai travelled nearly 200 miles from his home in Leeds to lie in wait outside Farmanullah Sherzad's home near Westminster Abbey, chasing him through the streets and stabbing him with a kitchen knife before he could reach safety. The case has drawn attention partly because of Tajzai's immigration history, having crossed the Channel from France four years ago and later been granted temporary leave to remain in the UK.

Court proceedings at the Old Bailey heard that CCTV footage showed Tajzai browsing for knives in Leeds on the day of the killing, before travelling to King's Cross, changing his clothes and donning a surgical mask ahead of the attack. The killing followed a prior dispute after Mr Sherzad, 26, was found to have been secretly messaging the wife of Tajzai's cousin, Zakirullah Tarakhail, which had led to a stalking complaint against Sherzad that was later dropped. Tajzai, whose defence initially argued he was a traumatised refugee with PTSD, changed his plea to guilty on the fourth day of trial and now faces a likely life sentence, with sentencing due to follow.