Boy guilty of murdering teen on party dance floor

A teenager who stabbed a 17-year-old boy to death on a crowded dancefloor has been found guilty of murder.

Charlie Cosser, from Milford, Surrey, was stabbed three times in the chest at the outdoor party in Warnham, West Sussex, on 23 July 2023.

The teenage defendant, who was 16 at the time of the attack and cannot be named for legal reasons, faces life imprisonment following a trial at Brighton Crown Court.

A jury unanimously convicted him on Tuesday of murder and having a bladed article.

Members of the victim's family cried and hugged each other as the verdict was given at the court.

The trial heard that a fight broke out between the defendant, Charlie and two other boys on the dancefloor after the defendant and his friends were asked to leave the party.

A partygoer unknowingly took a video of the fight involving the defendant as she filmed her friends dancing in the marquee at the BalFest event.

Opening the case on 13 May, prosecutor Alan Gardner KC said: “In the darkness and noise of a crowded dancefloor his use of the knife and blows of the knife went unnoticed by those in the vicinity."

The court heard from numerous witnesses who attended the party during the course of the trial.

A friend of the defendant said he had drunk an "excessive amount” of vodka and appeared “angry” after a man had unsuccessfully tried to make him leave the party because of his behaviour towards a young woman.

The witness described hearing “arguing” inside the marquee before the defendant and others started fighting.

He said he later found the defendant next to the road with his hands and trousers “covered in blood”.

The young man and another friend of the defendant also said they heard him say "I've stabbed someone".

Mr Cosser was still conscious when police arrived at 00:30 BST, and was able to tell officers his name and address, the court heard.

He suffered a cardiac arrest on the way to hospital, with internal bleeding caused by a cut to a main artery.

The teenager died two days later, on 25 July.

Jurors heard the defendant accepted he had burned the clothes he was wearing at the party in a firepit, because he said they were covered in his own blood.

The knife has not been found.

The defendant, who denied the charges, refused to give evidence at the trial.

He previously pleaded guilty to murder during an initial appearance at Lewes Crown Court on 28 July last year, but successfully applied to withdraw the plea before sentencing.

Charlie's family has previously paid tribute to him as a "beautiful boy" with a "kind heart".