Mother tells Halifax courtroom her life lost meaning after son was stabbed to death

HALIFAX — The mother of a 16-year-old Halifax boy who was fatally stabbed last year delivered a heart-wrenching statement to a silent courtroom Tuesday, saying her life has lost all meaning since his death.

Basima Al Jaji, speaking through an Arabic interpreter during a sentencing hearing for two teens, said she is waiting for her son, Ahmad Al Marrach, to walk through the front door of the family’s home, and she described how she is still hoping to wake up from a bad dream.

“Ahmad has died, but I died with him,” she said as she read from her victim impact statement, her voice barely a whisper. “Life has no taste or colour since Ahmad passed away …. Happiness was stolen from (our) house.”

A well-liked Grade 10 student at Citadel High School in Halifax, Al Marrach arrived in Canada with his parents and six siblings in 2016 after escaping the war in Syria. On April 22, he was found badly injured in a parking garage next to the Halifax Shopping Centre in the city’s west end. He died later in hospital from a stab wound to the centre of his chest.

Four teens were originally charged with second-degree murder. Their identities are protected from publication under the Youth Criminal Justice Act. Tuesday’s hearing was for two teens who in October pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter.

In separate agreed statements of fact, the 14-year-old girl and a 17-year-old boy admitted they knew they would be taking part in a group assault on Al Marrach that could cause serious bodily harm. But both of them did not take part in the stabbing, the statements say.

The girl is expected to be sentenced March 14; the boy’s sentencing is set for March 31.

Meanwhile, a 14-year-old youth identified as the alleged killer is scheduled to stand trial for second-degree murder next month. The trial for a 17-year-old boy also charged with second-degree murder started Jan. 6.

Court has heard the deadly brawl was prompted by a disagreement over a girl involved with Al Marrach and one of the accused.

On Tuesday, the victim’s mother told the court that her son helped raise his younger siblings, frequently bathing, dressing and feeding them.

“He raised them up with me,” Al Jaji said, adding that his brothers and sister are now in mourning. “His brothers and sisters are being wasted away in front of my eyes … All of the family is dying every day.”

Four of Al Marrach’s siblings read victim impact statements in court Tuesday. All of them spoke about their profound sense of loss, but they also spoke about how wonderful it was to share time with him.

“Ahmad was the most fun person in the family to me,” said one of his older brothers. “I used to hang out with him and go swimming and skating … I never felt lonely until he was gone.”

His only sister recalled how difficult it was for her to believe he was dead, and she described how she awoke on the first day after his death and ran to every room in the house to find him. “I cried a lot that day,” she said. “I wish this reality was a dream.”

In the statements of fact filed earlier this month, the court learned that the four accused met at a downtown Halifax shopping mall, where one of the two still facing a murder charge obtained a large kitchen knife from a discount store. One of the statements says the 14-year-old girl was in a relationship with the boy who obtained the knife, who was also 14 at the time.

All four then boarded a transit bus and headed to the Halifax Shopping Centre, where one of the accused started a fight with Al Marrach.

Video images taken from the girl’s cellphone show the other three teens quickly joining the attack.

At one point, Al Marrach can be seen grabbing the girl’s boyfriend, and as the two fall to the ground, the girl screams: “Get the f — k off my man!” The court documents say the girl then kicked Al Marrach in the head several times and the two boys separated for about 20 seconds.

“During the commotion that follows … (the boyfriend), who is holding a large knife in his right hand, steps toward Ahmad, lifts his right hand above his shoulder and plunges the knife into the centre of Ahmad’s chest,” one of the statements says.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 21, 2025.

Michael MacDonald, The Canadian Press