A teenager who stabbed a man in what could have “very easily been a murder investigation” has been sentenced.

Freddie Gathithi, 19, has been sentenced to 26 months’ detention at Luton Crown Court yesterday (August 10) after being found guilty of a stabbing outside the shops in The Brow, Watford.

Gathithi, formerly of Boundary Way, was captured on CCTV having an argument with another man, which turned physical with a knife on April 27 last year.

Watford Observer: Police by The Brow in WatfordPolice by The Brow in Watford

The victim, in his 20s, was known to Gathithi and was left with a single not life-threatening wound to his upper back.

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Watford Observer: Freddie Gathithi. Credit: Hertfordshire ConstabularyFreddie Gathithi. Credit: Hertfordshire Constabulary

While Gathithi fled the scene, the victim was taken to hospital for treatment and later discharged.

He appeared for sentencing at crown court and was also given a restraining order.

Watford Observer: Police by The BrowPolice by The Brow

Detective Constable Lewis Mortimer said: “Thankfully, the victim’s injury was not serious but if the blade had caught a major artery, this could have very easily been a murder investigation in which the victim’s family would have been mourning his loss.

“I hope that this sentence offers both the victim and his family a sense of justice and closure.”

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