Harper Dennis Jailed for 10 Years Over Fake Rolex Manslaughter in Leicester

A teenager who stabbed his former friend through the heart following a dispute over a fake Rolex watch has been sentenced to 10 years in custody at Leicester Crown Court.

Harper Dennis, 19, killed 20-year-old Khaleed Oladipo near De Montfort University in Leicester after plunging a knife five times into his chest during an evening confrontation on February 3. Following a two-week trial, a jury cleared Dennis, of North Road, West Drayton, London, of murder, finding him guilty of manslaughter, possession of an offensive weapon, and failing to provide the PIN code to his mobile phone.

Passing sentence, Judge Timothy Spencer KC said Dennis had acted out of a "seething resentment" and rejected his claims that he had acted in self-defence. The judge noted that while both men had been involved in illicit financial transactions, Dennis was the individual who brought a deadly weapon to the scene on Oxford Street, near the university's Innovation Centre.

The court heard that the two men had originally formed a friendship through an online gaming community before their relationship soured over financial dealings. Dennis, a first-year business management student at the University of Leicester, told jurors he had provided £6,000 to Mr Oladipo, a third-year student at De Montfort University, after being promised large profits through fraud websites. Dennis explained that the sum was comprised of his personal savings alongside money given to him by his parents, and stated during evidence that he suffered from a gambling addiction.

When the money was not returned, Mr Oladipo handed over a Rolex watch as partial compensation, assuring Dennis it was genuine. Dennis subsequently discovered the timepiece was counterfeit after taking it to jewellers in Hatton Garden in Camden, London, where he was laughed at, fueling further bitterness between the pair and leading Dennis to threaten to expose Mr Oladipo online as untrustworthy.

On the evening of the attack, which was recorded on dashcam footage, Dennis covered his face shortly before confronting the victim. Despite being lighter in build and coming off worse during the physical struggle as Mr Oladipo desperately attempted to protect himself, Dennis inflicted five separate knife wounds, including the fatal blow to the chest.

Prosecutor Jane Osborne KC detailed how Dennis fled the scene after the attack and handed a bag of clothes to his flatmate. During the incident, Mr Oladipo had been on a phone call with his girlfriend, who heard him ask why Dennis had approached and stabbed him. Police arrested Dennis later that evening at his accommodation, where he claimed to be shocked upon learning he was suspected of murder.

In a victim impact statement read to the court, the victim's sister, Precious Oladipo, described the devastating toll the loss had taken on their family, stating that their mother had been hollowed out by grief and that every future milestone would now be marked by her brother's absence.

Mitigating for the defendant, Tim Forte KC highlighted that Dennis had no previous convictions, possessed good prospects, and showed a lack of maturity typical of his age, arguing that the incident was short and unpremeditated.

Addressing Dennis directly in the dock, Judge Spencer KC remarked that his claims of genuine remorse rang hollow due to his persistent refusal to provide officers with his phone PIN, obstructing access to vital digital evidence throughout the investigation. The judge concluded that while the defendant had since matured to realize the total futility of the killing, he had taken a knife to the fight intending to cause serious harm, resulting in a wholly unnecessary loss of life.