Killer brothers to be sentenced over tragic death of Abdullah Yaser Abdullah Taleb, 16, in Darnall crash
16-year-old Abdullah Yaser Abdullah Taleb had fled war-torn Yemen just weeks before he was run down and killed
The two brothers responsible for killing a teenage boy who was hit by a car as he walked along a Sheffield street will learn their fate today - on the first anniversary of the horror crash.
16-year-old Abdullah Yaser Abdullah Taleb was not the intended target of the fatal collision, which occurred after a grey Audi vehicle mounted the pavement on Staniforth Road, Darnall.
The two men, brothers Zulkernain and Armaan Ahmed, were inside the car which was being driven directly towards a group of e-bike and moped riders.
As the Audi moved towards the group, it mounted the pavement and hit 16-year-old Abdullah, as he walked along the street.
It also hit one of the bike riders, an 18-year-old called La’rome Divers, who was knocked into a hedge.
In the moments beforehand tragedy struck, Abdullah looked to be without a care in the world as he tossed a water bottle into the air and caught it.
Abdullah, described as “tragically being in the wrong place at the wrong time,” suffered fatal injuries when he was hit by the car.
In February, jurors convicted the driver of the vehicle, Zulkernain Ahmed, 21, of Abdullah’s murder, while his brother Armaan, 27, was convicted of Abdullah’s manslaughter.
The two Ahmed brothers, both of Locke Drive, Darnall, Sheffield, are set to be sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court this morning (Thursday, June 4, 2026), exactly a year on from Abdullah’s tragic death.
Zulkernain is set to receive the mandatory life sentence imposed upon those convicted of murder. The minimum term he must serve behind bars will be set during today’s sentencing hearing.
A third Ahmed brother, Zain, was also in the vehicle at the time of the fatal crash. He disappeared in the aftermath and has never been traced.
Zain Ahmed remains a wanted suspect.
Abdullah had only arrived in England a few weeks prior to the crash, after leaving his war-torn home in Yemen.
Speaking in the days after the crash, close relative, Saleh Als Irkal, told The Star: “He came to Sheffield because they thought it was safe.
“He came here, and was excited about it, and was excited about staying here. He was excited about learning English.
“I was teaching him about business and giving him work experience, trying to help him get a better life. He was a clever boy, and he picked things up quickly, and he was picking up English quickly, too.
“He had said this was a peaceful country where he was happy to be.”